


Double Trouble Determination

by MorseCode312



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/M, Female Reader, Frisk (Undertale) & Reader Are Related, Genocide Route, Multiple Timelines, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Reader Is Not Chara (Undertale), Reader Is Not Frisk (Undertale), Reader does not start off with determination, Reader-Insert, Self-Insert, Story focuses more so on Frisk and Reader’s relationship, Undertale Pacifist Route, i don’t make the rules, kind of, like a side quest, sans/reader - Freeform, the pairing is only a very small chunk of the story
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-21
Updated: 2019-06-15
Packaged: 2019-11-27 06:06:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 11
Words: 25,491
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18190751
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MorseCode312/pseuds/MorseCode312
Summary: Frisk has been missing for days.With them being the only surviving member of your family, you go looking for them.You search Mt Ebott and end up falling into the Underground. You quickly come to terms with the fact that monsters really do exist, but what you can’t wrap your mind around is how Frisk gained some sort of spectacular ability to control linear time. And that somehow, you’re able to use it as well?How will this work, two humans in the underground with the same ability to SAVE and RESET, and the same DETERMINATION to overpower the other?(Reader has female pronouns. Frisk is referred to by they/them pronouns)





	1. A Heart Falls

Your body ached as you came to, eyes adjusting to the dusty air settling around you.

The only source of light was above you. Glancing up with squinted eyes you vaguely wonder how you managed to survive such a high fall with nothing more than a couple bruises. Shakily you get to your feet, feeling a bit weak as you adjust to your new settings. Flowers stood proudly beneath you, the soft soil beneath your feet indicating that they had been watered quite recently. You stepped out of the flower patch, kicking up soft dust from the path that stretched out in front of you. With no way to climb up, and a small part of you curious about the path, you start off.

The walls around you quickly start to develop into a corridor, and your hand trails along the packed dirt absently. The corridor ended with a doorway, with an emblem carved over the threshold. Hesitantly, you step through it. Somewhere, a light source illuminated a single patch of grass among the dirt, almost as if waiting to present something to you.

To your surprise, a golden flower popped up from the patch of soil.

Only…

This “flower” clearly had a face- and was currently eyeing you with a hint of amusement. “Well, this sure is a surprise.” It said with a small chuckle. “You must be so confused.”

“I uh…I guess I am.” You admit with a slight tilt of your head. To be frank, this was by far the weirdest thing to have happened to you, and you weren’t too sure how to approach this being in conversation. Instead of asking the obvious questions, you stuck with asking about the reason you were here in the first place. “I-I’m looking for Frisk.”

With that, the flower’s eyes seem to twinkle with recognition. He let out a harsh laugh. “Frisk, huh?”

Hope flutters in your chest. “Yes! Have you seen them?”

The flower snorts dismissively, his expression melting into a malicious grin that contorted the shape of his face. ** _“Does it matter? You won’t live long enough to see them again.”_**

“What do you mean…?” The settings around you flickered dark and you found yourself staring at an inverted color version of the flower, who seemed unaffected by the sudden change of scene. A teal light blinded you for a moment as you felt a tug at your chest. A small bluish heart floated in front of you now.

 ** _“See? Not even a hint of DETERMINATION.”_** The flower sneered. **_“You won’t last as long as the others, nevermind your dear Frisk.”_**   White pellets circled you and you reached for the light in front of you, hoping it would somehow protect you. Cowering under the threat before you, you felt your throat tighten as tears threatened to spill from your eyes. An awful laugh echoed off the empty walls of the cavern, sure to haunt your dreams for years to come.

“Actually, you know what? That’s too boring.”

The settings returned to normal, but you stayed in your kneeling position in shock as you stared at the flower with wide, tearful eyes. The flower winked cheekily. “As much as I’d love to be the one to take your SOUL, I’m pretty sure it’d be much more fun to see how you stand up to the others. Especially after what your precious brother has done.” With another mocking laugh, the flower dove back into the dirt, leaving you shaking uncontrollably on the ground.

You felt your stomach twist horribly as you realize that the myths you heard as a child were true.

Mt Ebott was indeed the home to all monsterkind.

* * *

 

The area was strangely quiet, you notice as you walk through the Ruins. The name on the sign was accurate, as everything around you was crumbled and neglected, with piles of dust everywhere you turned. It felt like you had been walking for hours, forcing your way through odd puzzles and mazes, until you found a decent house tucked away from the rest of the Ruins. You politely knocked on the front door, waiting awhile before inviting yourself in. The door had been unlocked, and creaked quietly as you stepped in, with no sign of anyone else in the home. It was rather spacious, and warm, too. A nice fireplace blazed quietly in the living space, and a fresh pie sat on the countertop in the kitchen, only one slice cut from it. With no one around, and your stomach growling hungrily at the sight of food, you forgot your manners and cut yourself a slice. The grumble in your stomach grew as you caught a whiff of the pie. It smelled of butterscotch and cinnamon-- an odd combination in your opinion, but one you were more than willing to try.

The baked dish was soft and warm, as if it had just come out of the oven not too long ago. The ache in your body was relieved the moment you swallowed the first bite, and you could’ve sworn you felt the bruises on you melting away. A fuzzy sensation nuzzled itself into the center of your chest and stayed there long after the pie had been finished. You felt as if you had eaten a whole meal, and sleepiness started to weigh you down. You made yourself comfortable in the huge recliner in front of the fireplace, former worries and stress having been forgotten for the time being. With a sigh you settle deeper into the chair.

Just a quick nap, you resolve, and you’ll be back on your feet in no time…

…The fire was still burning when you woke later.

You yawned and stretched, basking in the wonderful homey feeling this place gave you. You felt safe and secure.

_Frisk would love this place…_

The thought made you stiffen with cold realization. You jumped to your feet, horrified at how easily the home had secured you, how it made you forget everything, including your poor little sibling. You couldn’t stand to imagine the horrors he might have had to face down here, while you sat here kicked back and lazing about in dreamland without a care in the world. You rubbed your face angrily, kicking yourself mentally before letting out a sigh. You’ll beat yourself up later after Frisk is home safe.

You carried on exploring the rest of the house, now sure that there was no one here for the time being. You hoped to find a map or some sort of clue that could lead you closer to your younger sibling. Unfortunately, all that you discovered was a journal full of silly puns and jokes, small libraries with facts of snails, and a dusty child’s room that looked untouched. Having searched through the main floor of the home, you made your way downstairs. The stairs revealed a long hallway that seemed to go on for a while. With no other choice but to push forward, you did, after a while coming across a huge metal door. As heavy as it looked, it seemed like it had been pushed open just enough to let someone small through. Maybe even Frisk, you thought to yourself. That small flutter of hope from earlier resurfaced inside of you, coupled with a small bit of fear.

Frisk had already been here, it seemed, and you were right behind him. At least you had hoped so.

A brisk breeze drifted from the opening, and you shivered, rubbing your arms in anticipation to leave the warm house. Steeling yourself, you stepped over yet another larger pile of dust and pushed the door open wider to accommodate yourself.

It was like stepping into an entirely different world. Snow fell softly from a dark sky, but light reflected off from somewhere, creating a decent amount of luminance for you to feel comfortable travelling ahead. It was colder than the house, but you could manage for now. A small part of you wished you had enough foresight to bring a thicker jacket. It was warm this time of year, but you still scolded yourself for not knowing better than to prepare for the worst.

You supposed you still hadn’t learned that lesson by now.

You followed the path up towards a short bridge, with a fence across it just barely big enough for you to squeeze through. As you crossed, a chill ran up your spine, making you shiver violently.

_You were being watched._

You spun on your heel and faced the open air, paranoia coursing through you. Things had been silent since your interaction with the flower, but that didn’t mean the entire place was completely devoid of monsters. There had to be some reason why there was no one here, and there had to be a place where they were all currently gathered, you were sure of it.

Snow frosted the piles of dust scattered along the path. Your chest tightened for some reason as you glanced at each pile, wondering why there were so many of them. Each varied in size, but you found it harder and harder to ignore them with each pile you stepped over. It made you very uncomfortable, though you didn’t understand why.

A very long bridge and several completed puzzles later, you found yourself in a place called “Snowdin Town”, if the sign was anything to go by. It looked like it could’ve been a lively and cheerful place, but once again, it was silent and empty, which made the uneasiness in your gut grow. Frozen hands rubbed at your arms through your sleeves and you shivered violently. Goosebumps pebbled your skin, and you couldn’t help but to glance around you suspiciously. Knocking at each door you came across proved to be futile. The air was silent save for the sound of your own pulse in your ears, driving you slowly but surely to madness.

Something was most definitely wrong here.

It wasn’t until you moved past the town that the cold really began to seep into you. All the warmth from the pie was long gone now, and exhaustion rested heavily on your shoulders. Each step was unusually draining, feeling like your legs weighed a ton as they started to drag underneath you.

There was a bigger pile of dust in front of you, perhaps bigger than any that you had seen so far. Unlike the others, however, this one had some sort of clothing on it. Stepping closer to investigate, you noticed what looked to be thick body armor, boots, gloves, and a scarf. It was so out of place it was unnerving, and you didn’t dare to disturb the pile in fear of why it had been laid out on top of the pile of dust, as if someone had tried to dress it unsuccessfully like they would a snowman.

Your chest began to feel tight at this point, paranoia and fear and exhaustion starting to cloud your mind. You tried to push through it, tried to steady your breath and trudge on, but dark spots began to dance across your vision and your body started to weigh itself down. You sank to your hands and knees, fingers numb to the cold snow as you gripped and clawed at it in vain attempt to get back on your feet. It was no use. Using the remainder of the strength you had, you rolled yourself onto your side, staring at the annoying red clothing against the pure white of the snow, hoping that you weren’t going to die of out here.

…And hoping Frisk was still okay…

* * *

_Sans had felt the presence of a new SOUL in the underground when it first fell. He had watched her emerge from the Ruins, unscathed but put off for some reason. Even with the fear and uncertainty radiating off her SOUL, she pushed forward. He couldn’t see any LV on you, which was the only thing keeping him at a curious distance now, watching her from afar and shortcutting each time she came close to spotting him. The further she progressed the more uneasy she became, like she sensed something was wrong._

_It wasn’t until she got to Snowdin that she had started to slow down, most likely from the cold, he reasoned. The jacket she wore was too thin for this weather. Her cheeks started to flush, and your body continued to shiver in efforts to regain body heat. He was closer to her than he had been before, but she failed to notice as she discovered the pile of dust that laid in the middle of the path before her. He glued his sight on her, hand clutching his jacket as his SOUL ached knowingly. He watched as she hesitated over the pile before trying to move on. At this point, however, the exposure had started to take serious effect on her body as she collapsed almost at his feet. The struggle to get back to her feet had led her to sink down into the snow, exhaustion and resignation washing over her SOUL as she seemed to accept her fate. She had laid unmoving for several minutes before he approached her._

_Now that he was closer, he could see the resemblance between her and the kid. That discovery alone made him want to leave her there. And he had planned to, turning away from her and preparing another shortcut. Just as he was about to leave, however, he felt something tug at his SOUL urgently, keeping him in place for a moment._

_Sans glanced over his shoulder, eye sockets widening as he saw her SOUL hovering above her body, thrumming and swaying desperately in the cold. The tug at his own SOUL grew a tiny bit stronger with hope as he acknowledged it’s pleading call for help. Its hue was a mix of Integrity and Kindness, which created a color like that of Patience, but darker. Not a bit of DETERMINATION could be found in there, unlike the kid’s SOUL. He had seen that color enough times to have the violent blur burned into the back of his eyelids. Looking at her SOUL in comparison made him relax, letting a small breath escape his teeth as he once more approached the body._

_Hesitantly he let his blue magic surround the SOUL, gently pulling her limp body from the snow with a slight lift of his hand._

_The whole situation was unusual, and he knew it. A human SOUL never left its vessel unless confronted by a monster. He had no intention of confronting her, and there was quite literally nobody else around to do so either. And how it had managed to call him for help so strongly was beyond him. None of the other humans had this sort of control over their SOUL, not even Frisk. Yet, while still unconscious, her SOUL instinctively called out to his, pleading and persuading him to help her._

_This human was certainly something of an anomaly._

_The thought was put to rest for the moment as he concentrated on getting the human to a warmer spot. Reluctantly, he settled for his own home. The shortcut was brief, and her SOUL squirmed uncomfortably at the sensation. Her body was laid out across the couch cushions, and he pulled a thick blanket over her before stepping back to give her space. Her SOUL was gone now, establishing itself back into its rightful place._

_He rubbed at his forehead silently, mulling over the fact that this girl, who was clearly related to Frisk, was now curled up comfortably on his couch._

_…He could still faintly remember the timelines Frisk brought them up to the surface, only to get bored and drag the lot of them back into this hellhole, with only him being aware of it. It nearly drove him mad to think about, but at the same time, filled him with a complete sense of hopelessness. Frisk had too much power, too much DETERMINATION to be stopped by him or anyone else, and Sans was fully aware of that fact. How many timelines had Frisk killed his brother now? How many times had they offed Sans now? That they killed everyone and everything in their path, only to bring it back just to do it all over again?_

_What kind of sick human was this kid that she was related to? Was she even aware of the true monster the young child had become?_

_Regardless, how she was even related to Frisk in the first place was a mystery to him. Her SOUL was much too kind, he could tell, to harm even the smallest creature. Her LV was nonexistent, and there was no part of her that seemed threatening in the least._

_Of course, he had been wrong before about Frisk._

_He shook his head, glancing over her again. Her face was relaxed now, as if she hadn’t almost frozen to death outside mere moments before. Although he didn’t understand why, a small part of him was glad she was alive now, though he wouldn’t admit it to himself._

_For now, Sans needed to go check on Frisk’s progress through the Underground, resolving to come back when she was awake. Perhaps she’d be the one to set things straight around here._

He hoped you would be.


	2. Déjà Vu

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It won't matter how many times he tells you, you won't believe him yet.

_It was a beautiful summer day._

_You grinned softly to yourself, eyes closed as you basked in the warm of the sun. It had been too long of a winter this year, bleeding into the springtime before finally melting away with the summer heat. You had been glad to store the shovels and snow gear, excited to dig out the lawn chairs and pool noodles from the dusty old shed in the backyard. You and Frisk didn’t live too far from the community pool, so the two of you would walk up each day, spending the entire afternoon in the water before the sun started to set._

_This was where you lay now, resting on the side of the pool with one leg dangling in the cool water. This was what life should be like, you thought to yourself. No worries, no responsibilities; just you and Frisk, enjoying everything life has to offer._

_Oh, how you wished to make moments like these last forever…_

A sudden groan from your stomach pulled you towards consciousness. The bright and sunny day slowly faded into darkness, a small chill running through you. Your head ached terribly now, and you clenched your eyes shut tighter, rolling yourself into a tight little ball. The thick blanket was curled into your fist and pulled tighter over your shoulder as you shivered again.

Vaguely, you remembered passing out in the snow. A part of you, however, chalked it up to be some twisted nightmare, and you had just fallen asleep on the couch in your home. The stiffness in your joints protested otherwise, and the angry growl of your stomach finally encouraged you to sit up and face the reality before you.

The living space you sat in was quite humble, in that there wasn’t a lot there. A decent-sized television stood across the room from you, and the table on the side of the couch held a single book. Against the wall to your other side stood a longer (dining?) table, and on that sat a rock on a plate. The room however, felt cozy, and it wasn’t that hard to imagine folks living here. You assumed whoever lived here was the one that brought you out of the cold, but they didn’t seem to be anywhere nearby.

A bit of exploring brought you to a small kitchen, of which the proportions baffled you. The sink and counters towered a good foot or two over you. One of the burners on the stovetop was blackened and charred severely, while the other three looked brand new. The small refrigerator to the side was filled with containers labeled “LEFTOVER SPAGHETTI”, which took up every inch of the shelf space.

Deciding there wasn’t much else to see in the kitchen, you took to the stairway, climbing up to the second floor. There were only two doors up here, spaced out so that they stood on opposite sides of the wall. A picture of a bone was framed and hung between the two doors. The first door had yellow tape and other caution signs hung on it, and with a jiggle of a handle you found that it had been locked. Not surprised, you walked to the other door, hoping it would be a different story this time. Your curiosity peaked upon noticing a bright light dancing under the door frame. Your hand grasped the doorknob, turning it slowly.

“y’know, some people wouldn’t be too _key_ n on strangers snooping through their things.”

You squawked in surprise, jumping away from the sudden presence. Heart pounding in your throat you dare yourself to look at the person who had startled you.

You weren’t too surprised that he was a monster. You were, however, surprised that he looked like a skeleton. Suspended in the dark space of his eyesockets were two small pinpricks of light, of which glanced over you once before his grin widened and his head tilted slightly in amusement. Your face warmed up with embarrassment as you realized the awkward sound that had erupted from you moments before.  He stayed quiet as you sputtered, trying to gain back at least some of your dignity.

“I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to be nosy!”

“well, at least one of us can say that.”

It took you a moment to process his comment. He was…joking with you?

“the name’s sans.” he continued, stretching a gloved hand out to you.  He noted your hesitation, your eyes glancing between his hand and his face. “aw, c’mon kid, it’s just a handshake. don’cha know how to greet a new pal?”

He seemed patient, waiting for you to shake his hand. Slowly you reached your own hand out to grasp his, squeezing politely and shaking his hand. A high-pitched squeak emitted from your palms - something akin to flatulence, and you couldn’t hold back an amused snort as you pulled away to notice a small whoopie cushion in his hand. He chuckled lightly with you, stuffing his hand back into the pocket of his hoodie.

You had relaxed enough now, sure that he wasn’t going to hurt you, and you told him your name. He acknowledged this info with a small nod, right before your stomach interrupted your conversation with a rude grumble. You held your stomach, flushing with embarrassment.

“I’m sorry. It’s been a while since I’ve eaten anything.” You mumbled.

“s’fine.” He shrugged. “makes sense, after ya almost froze to death in the snow. c’mon, there’s some leftovers in the fridge.” He gestured for you to follow, turning on his heel and leading you downstairs.

As you followed Sans, you couldn’t help but study him a bit. He was just about your height, give or take an inch. Despite having the appearance of a skeleton, his clothes were filled out instead of hanging off him like you would’ve expected. It both unnerved and intrigued you, and you had to stop the questions that flooded your mind from dripping off your tongue.

Within no time at all, Sans had sat you down at the table, setting a plate of spaghetti and a glass of water in front of you before taking a seat across from you. He avoided your gaze, seeming oddly focused on the sprinkle rock that sat not too far from you. Your stomach grumbled again at the sight of food, and you didn’t hesitate to dig into the spaghetti, momentarily ignoring the skeleton in front of you.

The taste was…indescribable. You knew your face was twisted into an expression you’re sure you’ve never made before. It wasn’t _awful,_ but it wasn’t exactly the best thing you had eaten. Still, you weren’t sure when you’d be able to have access to food again, so you did your best to eat as much as you could.

“so,” Sans spoke up suddenly, his eyelights sliding up to focus on you. “what brought you down here in the first place?”

You swallowed the food in your mouth and set the fork down on the table, glad to have a distraction from the food. “I was looking for my little sibling. They went missing a few days ago, and I fell down here when I went to look for them.”

“what’s the kid look like?”

“Uhh, kinda small for their age. Short, brown hair. The last time I saw Frisk, they were wearing their favorite striped sweater and shorts.”

It was hard not to miss the flicker of light in his sockets, or the way his expression tightened a bit as you mentioned Frisk’s name.

“Have you seen them?” you asked, feeling your hope bloom a little in your chest. Sans looked uneasy, avoiding your eyes again as your stare intensified. “I’ve been worried sick about them. If you know anything, _anything_ , please tell me.”

“i’ll be honest with ya, kid, you don’t need to worry about Frisk.” Sans breathed. “pretty sure the kid’s alive an well.”

“Really?” You felt the tension in your chest dissipate with his words, standing to your feet with renewed vigor. “Do you know where they are? Can you take me to them?”

Sans was silent for a moment, looking conflicted with himself. It made you nervous, waiting for his response. “Sans?”

 

 

 

How do you tell someone their family member is a murderer?

Sans struggled within himself to find a decent way to bring this point to light. It wouldn’t be easy for you to take this sort of news, and a part of him accepted the fact that you weren’t going to believe him. Still, if he was going to maintain the hope that you’d be able to put a stop to Frisk’s repeating cycle of death, you had to know what they were doing.

Sweat built up on his skull and he sighed heavily before speaking. “listen, kid. frisk isn’t…they aren’t what you think they are.”

“What do you mean?” the confusion was palpable in your voice. He had to make his point quick before you dismissed him.

“m’sure you’ve seen the piles of dust outside, right?” he asked, watching you nod slowly. “monster’s turn to dust when they…when they die.”

You were quicker to piece things together before he could explain further. “You think Frisk did that?”

“i _know_ they did.” He corrected. “look, i know it’s not the easiest thing to hear but-“

“Frisk would never hurt anyone.” You countered firmly before he could finish. He looked up at you, surprised at your calm manner. Your expression was set stubbornly as you looked away from him. “I really appreciate your kindness, but I need to go. Now that I know for sure Frisk is here, I need to go find them.”

Sans knew there wasn’t anything he could say in this moment. When you headed for the door, he didn’t try to stop you. When the door shut roughly behind you, he hardly flinched. The nagging pinch of déjà vu kept him from doing anything else besides watching you leave.

He rested his skull in both his hands for a long time after you left.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry if it feels rushed. I'm trying not to let myself be snagged on minor inconveniences. I'll still try to have a decent pacing though, just bear with me.


	3. Helpless

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You don't get to save anyone this time.
> 
> *TW: Implied mentions of suicide.

The sign you had read a few minutes back read “Hotlands”. Considering the fact that Snowdin had _snow_ , and Waterfall had _waterfalls_ , you should’ve been more prepared for the heat that was currently pulsing in the air around you.

You weren’t.

Dying of heatstroke mere hours after almost freezing to death was ironically hilarious to you.

Your hand clenched tightly around the dry throwaway cup, wondering what kind of monsters could survive this kind of temperature. Or how Frisk did, for that matter.

Despite the heat, a small shiver curled down your spine as you momentarily recalled your conversation with Sans. He had insisted Frisk had something to do with the strange absence of monsters, as well as the insane amount of dust scattered through the areas. You didn’t want to accept such a thing, though. You prided yourself on knowing Frisk better than anyone, having been the only one they were willing to open up to. Even though they were unique in their own way, those accusations were far from the truth.

You didn’t even know why you were being so caught up about it. You knew Frisk wouldn’t be capable of such violence, so what did it matter what a strange skeleton _you had just met_ said?

The thought was momentarily discarded as you came across an oasis in this desert of a terrain. A tall building stood before you, with a sign over the entrance labeled “LAB”. Eager at the thought of finding shelter and air conditioning inside, you pounded your fist against the door a little rougher than you would’ve liked.

There was no answer.

Desperate, you tried again, calling out this time. “Anyone in there? Please! I just need a few minutes out of this heat!”

There was no answer for a long while, and you had just about given up before you heard the gears in the door. The entrance was suddenly opened to you and you stepped in, grateful for the cool air that graced your skin.

The door then closed behind you, however, leaving you in complete darkness.

Not complete, you corrected yourself, your eyes beginning to adjust to the dim lighting. The “LAB” was indeed a laboratory of sorts. Your hand felt along the smooth cold wall as you walked forward, making out small details in the shadows. There was a big monitor mounted to the wall. Next to it was a desk with a smaller computer monitor set on it. The screen was idle now, giving off most of the light in the room. Papers piled the desk and chair, and even stacked up high against the walls. Squinting, you could even make out a small fridge standing against the wall farther down.

“Hello? Is anyone there?” You called out in the darkness. You inhaled a strong odor of instant noodles and coffee, the combination making you cringe with distaste.

“S-so you’re really n-not Frisk.” A small voice stuttered. You jumped a bit in surprise, searching the darkness for the source.

“No, I’m not…Frisk is my little sibling.” You explain softly.

“S-so you’re…you’re related to them?”

“Yeah,” you confirmed. “Where are you?”

“Wait j-just a minute, I’ll get t-the lights.”

You heard someone shuffling a bit in the dark, blinking a couple times as a couple lights above you illuminated the room. You met eyes with a small yellow lizard monster.

She looked exhausted. Dark circles sat under her eyes, and the whites of her eyes were almost bloodshot, as if she had been crying. The constant wringing of her claws made your heart sink. “Hey, are you okay?” you asked softly.

“I d-didn’t know Frisk had family.” She muttered to herself, ignoring your question. “The cameras h-have been deactivated f-for a while, so I didn’t e-expect anyone else to be here.”

“Are you alone?”

Her front teeth worried at her bottom lip as she hesitated to answer. “N-not exactly, but m-most everyone e-else has been evacuated, I th-think. Mettaton was supposed to do that b-before he…”

You listened as she trailed off, her expression unreadable. “It’s pointless now, I guess.” She sighed.

Your brow furrowed with concern. She was obviously not in the best condition, and a part of you figured the dust had a factor in it. “Is there anything I can do to help you?”

She looked a little shocked at your offer. “H-help? Help with w-what?”

“I don’t know,” You admitted, “but you don’t look okay. Maybe we could help each other out?”

“Y-you mean help you find F-frisk?” she shuddered a bit.

“Yeah! I mean, you seem to be under a lot of stress, so you don’t have to.” You said, closing the distance between the two of you a bit. She took a couple steps back, watching you wearily. You stopped.

“I’m (Y/N).” You introduce yourself, hoping this would ease her a bit. “What’s your name?”

She hesitated. “Alphys.”

“Nice to meet you, Alphys. Do you work here?” Alphys nods a little. “It’s really nice. It reminds me of my old science labs back home.”

Alphys doesn’t respond, still wringing her hands. She’s slouched over herself, you notice, and you could imagine that if she stood to her full height she might’ve came up to your shoulder.

Finally, Alphys spoke up, not meeting your eyes. “I don’t think I can h-help. The cameras a-aren’t working anymore, s-so I can’t tell wh-where they are. But if…if you wanna go look for them y-yourself, the exit is j-just ahead.”

You nod solemnly. “I appreciate it, Alphys.”

The yellow monster nods, stepping aside to let you move forward. You hesitate, wanting to help the poor thing. But it seemed like she didn’t want any help, nor was she willing to do much to help you. Sans’ words echoed again in your head and you frowned. Frisk was just a small helpless kid. There was no reason for Sans or Alphys to be so weary of them.

You walked past Alphys, noting how she avoided your gaze once more as you passed, almost cowering a bit when you got close. You continued past, stopping when you reached the exit. This time, the door opened for you almost automatically.

But something nagged at you, rooting you in place. There was a whoosh of air as a door behind you opened and closed, and when you turned, Alphys was nowhere to be found. Curious, you stepped away from the door, going back to where Alphys stood before.

Now that you could see a bit better, you noticed a few more details in the room you had missed before. A huge bag of dog food was slumped against the wall. A small trashcan by the desk was filled with discarded anime figurines and noodle cups. There was another door on the wall, one that you assumed Alphys went into. This one refused to open to you however, so you moved on. Escalators framed the walls, leading up to another level of the lab. You resisted the urge to go snoop upstairs, instead turning your attention back to the computer screen.

The screen lit up when you brushed your hand against the mouse. You flinched a little at the sight of yourself on the screen, surprised as you watched your reflection do the same. It took a moment to realize the small camera atop the monitor was on and was currently capturing your every move. Glancing up to see that Alphys had not yet returned from wherever she disappeared, you turned back to the monitor.

You stopped the recording. The screen changed and the video that had been recording started to play back. You would’ve stopped it, but curiosity made you pause. Alphys was on screen, hesitant and looking away from the camera. Her condition seemed worse now, tears flowing almost freely, and her body seeming to shake a bit with the effort to hold them back.

 _“I-I’m the only one left now, I think. Besides the amalgamates.”_ Computer Alphys stuttered. She sniffed and wiped her nose on her lab coat. _“I don’t know what t-to do. I-I’m not a fighter. That’s why I accepted to be the royal s-scientist.”_

You took a seat in the chair, watching the Alphys on screen fidget.

_“Mettaton just went down. I th-thought he was going to evacuate everyone else. I-I was too nervous to do it myself. Nobody w-would’ve listened to me, I think. I knew they’d l-listen to him though. B-but he tried to face the human himself…”_

“Frisk?” you asked aloud to yourself.

 _“Now he’s gone too.”_ A small sob escaped her, and she covered her mouth. Your heart ached for the monster, and you glanced at the door again, hoping Alphys would emerge any moment now. You might have to admit to being nosy again, but that was something you were going to have to deal with. The situation clearly was weighing her down, and she had no one to turn to. 

Alphys went silent in the video, her brow creased in thought as she wiped the stray tears. _“I-I’m gonna do it.”_ Her breath caught for a moment before she forced a breath and repeated herself, louder this time. _“I’m gonna do it. There’s n-nothing left for me here. Most of the underground is g-gone, and in only a few hours, the k-king will have to face the human himself.”_

 _“I h-hoped it wouldn’t come to this_.” She whimpered softly. Finally, after looking at everywhere but the camera, her eyes met yours through the screen. Her tear streaked face scrunched up a bit.

_“I don’t want to die…”_

Something inside you clenched horribly at her pitiful tone, watching as she let herself dissolve into a fit of choked sobs. It lasted for a little bit, until she gasped at a sudden knock at the lab entrance. _“They’re here!”_ She squeaked fearfully. _“Th-they came back for me! Oh stars, I didn’t think it would end like this! …B-but maybe it’s better this w-way. I’m too much of a coward…”_

You heard the knock again, followed by your own voice. It made Alphys stop mid-sentence in her nervous rant, but you paused the video before she could say more.

Your stomach was twisting fearfully, a numb sort of shock washing over you. Alphys thought you, or _someone_ had come for her specifically. It didn’t take much guessing to know that she was expecting her death when you walked in. And while it might have confused her when you didn’t, you could see she was considering an alternative.

You re-approached the door, knocking on it insistently. “Alphys? Are you in there?”  

There was no answer.

You knocked heavily, tears coming to your eyes. “You don’t have to do this, Alphys! I can help you!” You shouted through the door. “Please don’t do anything irrational.”

This went on for some time. An hour later you were huddled by the door, leaning on it a bit as you pressed your ear to the cool metal. There was no sound besides the consistent hum of the building. You had begged and pleaded through the door, tearful as you realized how helpless you were in this situation. You had no way to get through the door, and Alphys refused to come out.

 At this point, you weren’t sure if there was even anyone on the other side of the door to answer you…


	4. A RESET

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You find Frisk (?) 
> 
> You don't like this.
> 
> *A heavy bit of violent themes in this chapter. Please be careful reading this if you are uncomfortable with that.

Most monsters enjoyed the Last Corridor. The artificial light from the core shone through the stained glass windows almost like the afternoon sun. The golden tiles reflected it against the walls and pillars that lined the walkway. Those very same pillars almost dwarfed the skeleton monster standing amongst them, the grand splendor of the hall lost on him. 

He couldn't count how many times he had seen these very walls splattered with blood, or how many times he had shattered these proud pillars into dust with the force of his attacks. He could only imagine how many times his own dust had been scattered across the golden floor. 

The very thought of it made his SOUL twinge nervously. He couldn't count how many times he and Frisk went head to head like this. He had lost count after the first several times. He didn't have it in him to keep track after that, his HoPe weakening each time. 

His mind drifted to you for a moment. Even though you didn't believe him now, a small part of him held onto the hope that you might be able to see the truth soon. 

Even if it wasn't in this timeline. 

Footsteps echoed in the empty hall and Sans could feel himself tense up. A small child entered the corridor, flashing Sans a cocky smile. They didn't seem so threatening at first glance, but the dust that clung to their sweater said otherwise. Frisk never spoke during these encounters, but he could read their expressions like a book. They flexed the hand that held their knife - their choice weapon, and tilted their head to Sans. 

Asking if he was ready. 

Sans wasn't. He never was.

"heh. you've been busy, huh?" he chuckled mirthlessly. He went on with his usual spiel, the speech almost robotic with how much he's delivered it. It made him further question how many times Frisk had put them through this. But Frisk never interrupted him, only waited until he challenged them, stepping closer to him when prompted. 

Frisk was too ready when Sans began his attack, dodging the bones and blasts with ease and countering fiercely. As Sans slide out of the way of Frisks knife, he waved his hand, summoning a Gaster Blaster. The attack caught the child off guard, and Sans stumbled a bit as he caught himself, breathing heavily as he eyed the ash that stood in their place. 

It was a dirty move, cutting into his opponent's turn like that. But after what Frisk had put them all through, this was the least Sans could do to return the favor. 

It didn't last long, however. The room blackened for a second, and Sans found himself back where he was, facing Frisk once again. Their eyes reflected their angered shock, and the knife in their fists quivered. They didn't wait for Sans' prompting, rushing forward with a grunt. 

Sans dodged it, taking a breath. 

It had begun...

 

 

 

 

The hallways looked as if they had been drained of all the life that was in them. 

It was funny how you were beginning to feel that way too. 

You spent so much time sitting outside of Alphys' door that you felt your entire body ache at the stiffness in your joints. She never did come out, and you had no way to get inside. You pushed the thoughts away again, your stomach feeling queasy. It grumbled hungrily, but you didn't have the heart to eat. Instead, you pushed yourself forward, hoping you'd run into Frisk soon. 

That proved to be difficult at this time, however. The walls told the story of the first fallen child in the Underground, one that had been adopted into the Royal Family, but had ultimately died. You felt like you were going in circles at this point, rereading the same story over and over as you pressed forward. The maze of corridors had to end soon, and hopefully it would be before you collapsed again. Finally, after what felt like forever, you came across a different doorway. The golden arches above the door were breathtaking, and you took a moment to admire the piece. 

The moment ended when the silence was pierced by a violent sound, one that you could only liken to that of an intense thunderclap. The air buzzed with an odd energy that you hadn't felt before, making your skin tingle. Your heart raced with a sudden fear, gripping one of the columns nearby for support as the ground shook from another blast. 

You really didn't want to know what made that sound, but at the same time, you couldn't help your curiosity. You carefully stepped through the entry, peeking your head in.

You couldn't have prepared yourself for what you were seeing. Grand pillars had been toppled, crumbling across golden tiles. Dust floated in the air like a hazy smoke. Burn scars littered the walls and floor and the ceiling had cracks and bones sticking out of it. 

But what surprised you the most was your little Frisk, swinging a sharp knife at Sans' head. The sight made you gasp violently, drawing both of their attentions to you. 

Sans' eyes went wide as he saw you in the doorway, waving his hand and  _throwing Frisk to the other side of the room._

You shrieked, flinching at the sound their body made as it made contact with one of the few erect pillars. They slid down to the floor, slumped over. Sans was in the middle of speaking, but you heard nothing as you pushed past him, throwing yourself to your knees as you reached out to cradle Frisk. 

Their head lolled to the side as you pulled them to your chest, sobbing heavily as you shook them gently. They didn't respond. You could hardly see their face through your tears, but you could make out distinct scars and blood streaked across their face. It broke your heart to see them like this. 

The room darkened and you found yourself in the grayed out hallway again. 

The sudden transition made you almost hurl. Your mind tried to process everything at once. Frisk was dead, weren't they? 

_Weren't they??_

You saw it happen with your own eyes. Sans had killed them.

Yes, you had seen Frisk attack first, but the cuts on their body made it clear that it was only in self defense.

You had to get back to that room. Feeling a new sense of determination, you darn near sprinted through the hallway, ignoring the story on the walls, focused on making your way through the hallways. 

You made it back to the golden arch quickly, just in time to grab onto a column as the thunder cracked in the next room. Once the earthquake had passed, you threw yourself into the room. 

"Stop it!" 

Sans' head snapped towards you this time, shocked and ready to throw Frisk again. The protest in your throat died as he doubled over in pain this time, collapsing as Frisk stood triumphantly over him, knife in hand. 

"Frisk!" You shrieked, covering your mouth in horror at the sight. Frisk turned their head to you, tilting their neck a bit as if looking at you with interest. 

Red eyes almost glared at you from under Frisk's bangs, and a snarl twisted their little mouth. 

_That was not your Frisk._

You took a step back as they stepped over Sans towards you. Their little fist wielded he sharp knife threateningly towards you, and you had never been so scared of the young child before. They lunged at you suddenly, and you screamed and cowered in on yourself, arms covering your face as you braced yourself. 

The blow never came. 

You dared yourself to look up. Frisk was struggling in some sort of telekinetic hold. Across the room, Sans grunted with effort, his outstretched fist clenched tightly.  Both his fist and Frisk were surrounded by a faint blue glow. You were speechless as you watched once more as Sans threw the child across the room, this time piercing their body with bones. 

Your stomach heaved, and you clenched your jaw tightly, swallowing heavily. A breathy call of your name brought your eyes away from the lifeless body pinned to the wall. Sans was sat up against a broken pillar, his arm wrapped tightly across his chest. Weakly you crawled over to him. 

"you...you have to change this," Sans wheezed, his eyesockets closing as you drew near. "there's something wrong with them. they can't fix this on their own." 

"W-what can I do?" you manage through a hoarse whisper. "I can't change this." 

"the RESETS. you gotta take control of the RESETS." he said. "otherwise they're gonna drag us all back here again." 

"How do I do that?" 

Sans winced, slouching a bit further into himself. Blood began to seep through his gloves. He tilted his head towards you, eyes lidded. "i...i can't be sure, but i think it's their Determination. if you have enough of it, you could take control of the timelines." 

**_"See? Not a hint of Determination."_ **

The flower's words cut into you once again. "I don't...I don't  _have_ any determination." 

 The skeleton's face fell at your words, his sockets closing again. He forced a sharp "heh" and sighed. The hopelessness in his expression hurt. You felt the tears streak your cheeks as you went to place your hand on his shoulder. 

His shoulder gave way to your touch, his whole body crumbling in front of you until there was nothing left but a pile of dust and his hoodie. 

 

 

 

You were tired. 

Tired of crying. 

Tired of mourning.

Alphys was gone. Sans was gone. Frisk was dead.

The whole Underground. Gone. 

You were tired of being helpless. 

You rose to your feet, eyes having been dried of tears long ago. You looked around at the destruction that laid before you. You recalled each pile of dust you stepped over. Each empty town and forgotten home. 

_You wanted to change it._

Frisk had changed. Something was wrong with them. They never would've attacked you. They never would've caused this much damage and pain. 

_You wanted to Save them._

Sans had tried to tell you. He had hoped that you would be able to stop Frisk. 

_And you let him down._

_But no more._

_You were going to change this. You were going to make things better. For all of them._

You felt something stir in your chest. You closed your eyes and focused on it, focused on the thoughts that raged in your mind; the flurry of your own screams and cries of helplessness deafening you. From behind your eyelids you noticed a bright red light flooding the room. You took a breath and opened your eyes. 

Your SOUL floated in front of you, buzzing with a renewed energy. A vivid red swirled with the blue and greens of your SOUL, and you couldn't help but grin. 

_*Your feelings of helplessness have spurred you on. You are now filled with...DETERMINATION._

 

 

**_R E S E T._ **


	5. A Mother.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You have Reset. 
> 
> Frisk is Normal (?)
> 
> You meet the caretaker of the Ruins.

Your body ached as you came to, eyes adjusting to the dusty air settling around you.

But you’ve seen this before.

You sit up slowly, your mind slow in piecing your thoughts together. A quick glance up to the hole in the ceiling told you that you were back in the Ruins somehow. It seemed the Reset had worked. Questions as to how it did would have to wait, however.

Your heart catches in your throat and you flinch away from the small child next to you. They’re turned away from you, curled over themselves in a way that makes them seem smaller than normal. Their shoulders shake a bit, and you gather the courage to reach out, tenderly resting your hand on their shoulder.

They jerk, twisting to face you. Your name slips off their tongue breathily and tears flow freely down their face. Your eyes lock onto theirs and...

Frisk’s eyes aren’t red anymore.

The shock fades into a numb surprise. Now, seeing your younger sibling distressed like this tugs at your heart, and you pull them to your chest in an attempt to comfort them. Frisk automatically clings to you, shudders wracking their body as they sob heavily against your shoulder.

“I-I’m sorry....I’m so sorry....” they gasp between tears, and your heart falls because you know exactly what they’re apologizing for.

You fight against the awful memories surfacing and wrap your arms tighter around the small child.

_“Well isn’t this a touching scene.”_

You both stiffen, and your eyes glance up to a golden flower that has sprouted along the path in front of you. It’s mouth twisted into an amused smirk as it’s stem twitched from his chuckle. You tense as the flower eyes the both of you, holding Frisk tighter to you. Frisk doesn't allow you to, though, climbing out of your lap and turning to face the flower.

"What do  _you_ want, Flowey?" Frisk asks, their voice tense. The change in attitude unnerved you, but you got to your feet alongside them, pulling them back towards you a little. You shivered when Flowey's eyes meet yours.

For a moment, you could've sworn the flower looked a bit  _nervous_ as Frisk stood up to it. But it was gone as quickly as you noticed it. 

"Golly! I have to admit, I'm a bit curious about your big sister now, Frisk." Flowey giggled. "Even though their Soul had  _no_ Determination in it whatsoever, they managed to pull enough together to overcome yours. Now she controls the timeline, and you're going to be stuck along for the ride. Gee, I _wonder how that feels_." 

The flower's tone turned annoyed towards the end of it's speech, rolling it's beady eyes to punctuate their sentence. "Anyways, I'm absolutely dying to see how this turns out. Nothing like some good old sibling rivalry to liven things up a bit." Flowey chuckled again. "Guess I'll be seeing the two of you later." 

With that, the flower was gone. 

You relaxed slightly, letting out the breath you had been holding. Frisk hadn't said anything since challenging Flowey, and their body was stiff and tense underneath your grasp. You let them go, stepping back. You wanted to ask them so many questions, but the sheer number of such had left you speechless as you stared at the back of their head. 

"Frisk, I-"

"Is anyone down here?" A soft voice calls from the next room. You reach for Frisk again to try to put them behind you, an instinctive effort to keep them safe, but they duck out of your grasp and head for the doorway towards the voice. You follow, watching them disappear into the next room. 

"Oh! I thought I had heard voices." You hear the tender voice as you assume they address Frisk. "How scared you must be, falling into such a place. You need not be afraid anymore, my child." 

You stepped into the room yourself, catching her off guard with your presence. 

"Another human?" She raised a brow. "And an older one at that..." 

She was a good foot or so taller than you, and seeing her dwarf Frisk made you uneasy. She held herself proudly, but her eyes were kind as they took you in. Frisk seemed to beam happily up at her though, grabbing onto her purple dress fondly as if she was their mother. 

"You do not need to fear me, my child." she addressed you, noticing your tension. "I am Toriel, the caretaker of the Ruins. I walk this path most every day to see if a human has fallen down here. You are the first humans to fall in such a long time.

"I understand that you are weary of me, but if you would like, I can guide you through the catacombs. It would be careless of me to leave you to wander on you own, would it not?" 

You looked between her and Frisk, but a part of you had already softened at the idea of letting her guide you. Her gentle voice soothed your worries almost effortless. 

"Okay." you nodded a little, a small grin pulling at your lips at Frisk's own excitement as Toriel took their hand and gestured for you to follow. 

You obliged, forcing the nagging of your thoughts to the back of your mind. 

 

 

There was no doubt Frisk had met Toriel before. As the caretaker guided the two of you through the old hallways, it was clear that the child was indeed familiar with this process. Especially with how quickly they accomplished the tasks Toriel set out for them. When the first monster confronted the two of you, Toriel barely had to instruct Frisk on how to handle the encounter. And when Toriel left the two of you to sit and wait for her return, Frisk gladly took your hand and led you through the halls with ease. 

Eventually you ran into her again, just outside of a cozy little home tucked away from the rest of the Ruins. 

You tensed upon seeing the familiar home, those nagging thoughts from earlier returning. Frisk seemed to stop too, oddly focused on one of the bushes outside of the home. They pull themselves away after a moment, grabbing your hand and pulling you eagerly towards the house. 

Toriel closes the door behind you, and you inhale the sweet cinnamon that hangs in the air. Toriel asks you to wait a moment in the living room while they take Frisk to bed for a nap. They didn't look very tired, but they didn't protest either as they were led down the hall. You stand quietly in the room, eyeing the fire as it dances gracefully in its place. 

As pretty as it is, it doesn't distract you from your thoughts. 

You can't deny the truth, as much as it sickens you to accept - Frisk has killed everyone you've encountered at least once before; including Toriel. Which doesn't make any sense to you. The goat monster has been so kind and patient with the two of you, going so far as to welcome two humans into her home without hesitation. She treats the two of you with such fondness and concern that it makes your heart ache horribly to imagine someone hurting her in such a way. 

Frisk has been so cheerful, and so happy around her, to consider that she had met her end at their hands is sickening. It makes you wonder if it's all just an act.

You're so caught up in your thoughts, you hardly notice that Toriel had joined you in the living room. You flinch at he sudden appearance and her kind smile fades a little. 

"I assure you, you have no reason to fear me," she says softly, almost pleading with you. 

"I don't," you protest immediately. Because you don't - your weariness of her had melted long ago. "I just...I have a lot on my mind." 

"I see." she nods. "Would talking about it help?" 

Instead of waiting for your answer, she guides you to sit at a little dining table in the corner. After scooting your seat closer to the table,  she takes the seat next to you. Her hands are folded politely in the space in front of her, and she waits for you to speak. 

It takes you a few moments to collect your thoughts; you wanted to avoid mentioning Frisk by name, or mentioning her death in the previous timeline. Something inside of you whispers that you shouldn't mention any part of the last timeline. 

Instead, you start with a question. "Have you...have you ever had someone suddenly change? Like, someone you were close to did something that you never thought they'd do, and it changed the way you looked at them? And you...didn't know what to do about it?" 

Her patient smile is replaced swiftly with a pained grimace, "Yes," she answered quietly, looking down at the table. "Unfortunately I have." 

You frown at this, unsure at the somber tone in her voice. "...what did you do about it?" 

She takes a moment to speak, closing her eyes and taking in a deep breath. "I didn't handle it well. I do not wish to go too deeply into details, but...I reacted horribly, and in a way that I wish I hadn't. But one cannot take back their actions, and I am to live with mine, just as he will live with his." 

You don't question who this 'he" is. Instead, you reach out to rest your hand on top of hers. Her cold expression melts as she looks back to you, and she smiles sadly. "I can guess by the way you ask that this has also happened to you. However, I implore you to think rationally before you do or say anything to this person. Perhaps you have not considered everything?" She sighs. "I understand that it is easy to act impulsively, especially when ones acts have been...especially troublesome. But do not do something that you will regret, especially if you love this person."

You weigh her words. True, you don't know why Frisk did what they did. And you're still unsure of them now. But they're not acting the same as they did before. Maybe the Reset reversed whatever changed Frisk? Maybe it was best to be careful around them until you could have a proper talk with them. 

Toriel let you think to yourself for a bit before taking your hand in hers and squeezing it comfortably. "I hope that helps, my child. If you are up to it, I may have something to lighten your spirits a bit? Wait here." She gets up and retreats into the kitchen.

You somewhat doubt much will help with the anxiousness building in your mind, but you wait at the dining table as she 'd asked, lightly drumming your fingers on the wood surface as you waited. She emerges from the kitchen after a few minutes, presenting a hefty slice of pie. When she sets it in front of you, your mouth begins to water, and you can't help the rumble of your stomach. The first bite tastes like heaven, and soon the tension and stress is melting from your body. You feel at home, safe and protected from anything that may harm you. It's almost as if your heart grew a bit with every bite.

You slow down about halfway through the slice, looking up at Toriel. "Do you feel better?" Her smile has grown again, and the tenderness in her gaze makes you feel happy. You nod. "Magic is a wonderful thing, is it not?"

"Magic?" 

She nods. "Monsters are made of magic, body and Soul. Technically speaking, I suppose, as the word 'magic' contributes a different meaning to humans," she explains. "It's the energy that flows within us, and takes different forms, depending on the monster type. My own magic stems from heat elements, and is greatly affected by my emotions. I'm sure you've heard of the saying, 'made with love'?"

You nod a little as you swallow another bite. "But you mean it more literally, don't you?" you ask, glancing down at the pie thoughtfully.

She hums in confirmation. "Food in the Underground will taste differently than you are used to on the Surface. The monster who prepares the food will have poured their Soul into it, and the taste will reflect whichever emotion they are feeling." 

Oh. The realization dawns on you as you look up at her again. You feel a few tears prick the corners of your eyes, and you feel your lips curl into the biggest smile you can manage. Before you can stop yourself, you've stood, wrapping your arms around her. She seemed to be expecting it, however, for her arms have pulled you close into her chest without hesitation, and she holds you like that for a long while. 

When you let go, she releases you as well, smiling down at you. She dismisses herself back to the kitchen then, allowing you to go back to finishing your pie. You wipe your eyes, sitting down once again. Instead of going back to your pie, however, you notice a faint glow in the hallway. Glancing towards the kitchen, then back towards the mysterious glow, you get back on your feet, heading towards the hall. 

A bright yellow star hovers in front of you, sticking out like a sore thumb among the potted plants and bookshelves. But it's presence is almost breathtaking, drawing you to it like a moth to flame. Without hesitation you reach for it, curious as your hand goes through it. 

But you feel something stir in your chest, and your strength feels fortified. The empowerment leaves you breathless for a moment and you pull back from the light.

**Your heart-to-heart with Toriel fills you with DETERMINATION.**

**_S A V E._ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have a few personal headcanons here: 
> 
> Food is GREATLY impacted on the emotion one is feeling as they make the food. From Toriel's pie to Papyrus' spaghetti, I plan on exploring this a bit more as the story goes on. 
> 
> Also, the one controlling the Timeline with their Determination is the one who can see the Save points, and each person's Save point is going to be unique to their person/circumstances. 
> 
> And I do like the idea of Toriel having SOME regret over leaving Asgore the way she did. Although she still doesn't support his cowardice, a part of her still loves him and their SoulBond hasn't been completely severed. 
> 
> As always, comments are appreciated!


	6. Fire and Ice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You leave the Ruins.

You were sitting on the floor beside Frisk's bed when they stirred. Their hair was messed up from their slumber, and with a small smile you reached out and fixed it for them as they sat up and stretched. They looked at you contently, smiling happily as they leaned into your touch. You smoothed down the last of their hair, caressing their cheek. 

"Sleep well?" Frisk nods calmly. "Toriel went out for a moment, but she asked me to give you a piece of pie when you woke up." 

They perked a bit, tossing the thick quilt off of them and moving to get to their feet. You stood with them, holding the plate out towards them. They don't take it immediately, instead crouching beside the bed and grabbing a small drawstring sack from underneath it. Then, they take the pie from you wordlessly, brushing past you and out the room. You follow them curiously, watching as they enter the kitchen, setting the plate on the counter. They reach into a drawer and pull out a roll of clingwrap. With skill you didn't know they possessed, they wrapped the pie neatly, setting it into the sack carefully and setting the empty plate in the sink. 

"How many times have you done this before?" you blurt suddenly. Their back is turned to you, but you notice their shoulder stiffen and their spine straighten at your question. Silence fell between the two of you, and you cleared your throat. "I only ask 'cuz...you really seem to know what you're doing." 

They relax a little at that, turning around to face you. They wring the neck of the sack between their small fists as they consider your question. 

"I don't know." Frisk answers quietly. 

You don't really know what to say to that, so after another pregnant pause, you sigh. "Are you ready to go then?" 

"Go?" Toriel's voice startles you and you turn to face her. Her smile doesn't reach her eyes as she looks the two of you over. "Where are you going?" 

You calm yourself with a hand over your fluttering heart. "Home, I think? There's a door downstairs, and I'm sure there's an exit to the Underground, right?" 

Frisk makes a small noise behind you, but it's lost on you as Toriel's expression constricts with a jumble of emotions. "B-but are you sure you wouldn't prefer to stay?" 

You frown a bit. "Miss Toriel, you've been really kind, but we can't stay here." 

Her smile finally falls, and her brow furrows deeply. "I...I see. If you would excuse me a moment. I must do something first." She says, turning briskly and walking out of the kitchen. You turn to Frisk to see if they have any input, but are almost knocked over as they run past you after Toriel. They grasp the edge of your shirt and drag you behind them with an impressive amount of force. 

"Frisk? What are you doing??" you ask, catching yourself before you fall. They don't answer, leading you downstairs. 

Toriel hesitates at the foot of the stairs, glancing over her shoulder at the two of you as you follow her. "Please, go back upstairs." 

"Toriel, what's going on?" you ask her. 

She pauses, her back to you. "You wish to return home, do you not? As you've found out, the exit to the Ruins lies ahead of us. I am going to destroy it." 

Frisk snatches your hand and squeezes it as you flinch at the hardness in her tone. "But you can't! We have to go home!" 

"Go back upstairs. Please." she requests softly, continuing forward. 

"But Toriel!" 

You both follow her, struggling to keep up with her pace. It isn't until you've cornered her against the tall metal door that she finally turns to face you again.

"You don't understand!" She cries, her mouth twisted into a snarl. "Every human that falls down here meets the same fate. I've seen it again and again: they come, they leave, and then they  _die._ "

"Toriel..."

Her eyes become glossy with unshed tears. "If you two leave this place...Asgore will kill you. Do you understand? I just want to protect you. Please...please don't try to stop me." 

You're speechless now. The pain in her expression strikes you deeply, and you feel your own eyes well up with tears. 

Frisk steps forward boldy, surprising the both of you. 

"I see...you wish to leave so badly, then?" 

The warm lights in the corridor melt into darkness, and you find yourself in a three-way confrontation with Toriel. You choke a bit as you see your Soul float from your chest, and panic at seeing Frisk's do the same. The both of you are exposed now, and you grip Frisk's shoulder to try to pull them back behind you. 

They don't budge, shrugging your hand off of them. 

Toriel's paws ignite with a hot flame, reflecting against the tears in her eyes. "I see only one solution to this. Prove yourselves to me. Prove that you are strong enough to survive." 

The onslaught of fireballs and attacks leave you breathless as you try to dodge them. Any attempts to talk to her is disregarded, and all you can do is Spare her every opening you get, hoping this will end soon. Frisk, on the other hand, takes minimal damage. It's almost graceful, the way they twist and dodge her attacks. Neither of you fight back, focusing all your energy on not being hit. 

After the first few hits you take, however, Toriel's attacks change. They start to avoid the both of you, giving you a moment to breath. Toriel's eyes no longer are on either of you, instead on a particular point behind you that you don't bother to look at yourself. Instead, you notice the tear trails down her cheeks, and the dying flames on her fists. 

Those flames do eventually extinguish, and Toriel's sorrow is palpable as she collapses to her knees before the both of you. Your own face is wet, and you sniffle a bit, chest aching as she wipes her eyes. 

"Pathetic, is it not?" She says softly, almost to herself. "I can't even save one person." 

Your Soul constricts painfully and you go to approach her, wanting nothing more than to comfort her.

Frisk reaches her first, standing just a few feet before her. She looks up at them. Her sad expression quickly turns to confusion as she eyes them. "My child...?"

You don't get to react fast enough as they slash Toriel across the chest with a knife, causing her to stumble backwards, clutching the wound in surprise and shock. Her eyes widen for a moment, but then close as she winces. 

"You...at my most vulnerable moment...?" she coughs hoarsely. "And to think...I was worried you weren't going to fit in out there..." 

A breathy chuckle escapes her as her body begins to disintegrate. You can only stare in horror at the pile of dust that now lay before the both of you. A sharp clatter interrupts the silence, and Frisk is breathing heavily. They fall to their knees before the pile, clutching their head. 

"No...not again..." they sob. They turn to look at you, eyes blown wide. Their mouth opens to speak to you. 

You don't give them a chance.

 

**L O A D**

 

"Are you alright, my child?" 

Your head snaps up to the kitchen. Toriel has peeked her head into the doorway, watching you with a concerned expression. You don't answer, looking back down to your hand, which is still caressing the bright glowing star. Your whole body is shaking violently. 

Toriel notices this and crosses the short distance to wrap you in a comforting hug. You take it gratefully, clinging to her. She lets you, although her confusion is quite clear. She doesn't press the matter, thankfully, instead waiting until you've calmed to pull away. 

"Perhaps you should rest for a while, my child?" she suggests. She guides you with a hand on your back to the hallway, walking past the bedroom Frisk is sleeping in. She gently pushes you into the next room. "I do not mind if you rest in my bed for the meantime." 

You wordlessly sit on the edge of the bed. Toriel frowns softly at the sudden change in attitude. "I must leave you for a little while. There is something I must tend to in the Ruins. You will be okay until I get back, will you?"

"Y-yeah. I'll be okay." You manage. She seems satisfied with this for now, leaving you to your own devices. 

You wait until the front door shuts firmly before you leave her bedroom, ducking into the room Frisk is in. You're not surprised to see them sitting up already, blankets thrown askew and their head in their hands. They're crying again, but you don't move to comfort them this time. 

"Why?" you ask. Even though it's barely above a whisper, you feel like you tone conveys the complicated blend of emotions swirling around inside you. 

"I don't know!" they cry, voice breaking as they try to calm themselves down. The way they're crying is almost hysterical, their sobs loud and pathetic. 

You can't keep yourself away from them for too long. Soon your arms are wrapped around them, your own tears staining your cheeks. 

"You can't keep doing this." you tell them. 

"I can't control it," Frisk blurts. "It was an accident the first time! i didn't want to do it again after that, but then...then I got curious and did it again. I thought that since I could Reset it wouldn't matter! But I couldn't control myself after that!" 

You realize they're talking about their past timelines and your arms loosen around them a bit as you consider this.

They hiccup your name, drawing your attention to them. Their tears and snot have stained your shirt, and their eyes are red and swollen. They look at you pleadingly. "I don't know how to stop it. It-when you Reset, I thought it was better. And it is! But I don't want to hurt anyone else. I don't want to lose control again. You have to help me." 

"But how?" you frown deeply, wiping your eyes and using the hem of your shirt to dry their face. Tears still leak from their puffy eyes, but the worse of their crying is over. 

They hug you tightly as they consider their answer. "You have to stay Determined. You can't let me get control of the timeline again." 

You don't know how to do that. You don't know how to tell them that. How could you tell them something that would extinguish the tiny bit of hope they've created for themselves? 

You swallow heavily. "Yeah...okay. I will." 

The lie doesn't weigh so heavily as relief washes over their expression, causing a new wave of tears to fall from their eyes. You comfort them as best as you can. 

 

 

When Toriel comes back, you're ready. You've triple checked Frisk for any weapons, and keep a heavy eye on them as Toriel greets the two of you. When the subject of going home comes up, you're ready to follow her down to the lower level, cornering her once again. You've a better sense of her attack pattern, and soon she is crouched before you again, her face scrunched in hopelessness and sorrow. 

This time, both you and Frisk comfort her, sandwiching her in a hug between the two of you as you Spare her for the last time. The hallway gains it color back and your Souls melt into your chests again as she wraps her big arms around the both of you.

"You two are stronger than i thought..." she mumbled softly. She lets the two of you go, standing to her full height. She glances to the door behind her, then back to you and Frisk. "When you go past this door...keep walking as far as you can. Eventually, you will reach the exit to the Underground. Do not let Asgore take your Souls...Promise me that you will not allow his plan to succeed?" 

You both nod solemnly. 

She nods slightly as well. She wipes her eyes again, pulling you into a hug. The gently way she squeezes you almost pulls another cry from you, but you swallow the tears down as you hug her one last time. When she lets you go to do the same to Frisk, you have to dry your eyes again. 

"Be good, will you?" she asks Frisk softly. Frisk hums their promise, letting her go. 

Toriel brushes past the two of you, sparing you both one last longing gaze before she heads back upstairs. You want to follow her, taking a step in that direction. Frisk grabs your hand, though, grounding you again. The both of you share a look before agreeing silently between yourselves to move on. 

The big metal door gives way to both of you easily, and a brisk breeze chills you as you step out into freshly fallen snow. You sigh as the door closes behind you, the click of the hinges finalizing your decision. 

You have to pause Frisk's advancement though, stepping off the path towards another bright star. Frisk doesn't say anything as you grab the light, a renewed energy coursing through you. 

**Being able to Spare Toriel's life fills you with Determination.**

**_S A V E._ **


	7. Second First Meetings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You’ve met before.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shorter chapter this time, but we get back to Sans, so it’s not too bad, right? 
> 
> Comments are appreciated! 
> 
> Also, I’m on tumblr! wholesomeremorse is my main blog, so feel free to come by and yell at me! :D

_**“You think you’re so clever.”** _

You and Frisk paused in your trek and turned, finding Flowey sprouted in the middle of the snowy path. The flower's smug grin stretched as they saw Frisk tense beside you. 

"I know you killed her again, Frisk. And then you let your big sister clean up the mess." Flowey cackled. "It's pathetic, really." 

Frisk winced, and you glared at the flower. 

“Stop it.” You warned.

"I don't know why you even _try_. Frisk is a lost cause by now. You've  _seen_ what they're capable of, I'm sure. So why bother? Why waste time on trying to save them?" Flowey mocked.  

"Stop it." you repeated in a growl, pulling Frisk closer to your side. "Leave Frisk alone." 

"Or else what?" Flowey challenged, his expression darkening. "What're you going to do about it? News flash,  _big sister,_  you can Reset and Load all you'd like, but there's no way you’re getting rid of me. I hate to disappoint you, but you're just as weak and pathetic as the rest of these idiots. Just because you have a  _little_ bit more Determination than the rest of us doesn't change anything. Eventually, your Determination will run out, and you'll suffer along with the rest of us as Frisk regains control. They're going to get tired of your little Pacifist game sooner or later, and  ** _I can't wait to watch you destroy each other_**."

With another cackle, Flowey disappeared into the ground. You glared at the spot he was in for a moment before turning to Frisk. 

“Don’t listen to him.” You said, pulling them into a hug. “We’re going to get through this. Together.”

Frisk nodded weakly against your shoulder. You rubbed their back a bit before straightening, pulling them up into your arms. Their arms wrapped around your neck and as you supported them by your forearms, their legs hung loosely around your waist. You resumed walking, holding Frisk closer to your chest. The body heat shared between you kept you relatively warm as you went. 

The path went on for a little while, the tress parting to let the trodden path wind its way between them. The same brisk breeze that chilled your face also whispered through the trees, the rustling and natural creaking of the wood making you relax a bit. Eventually you saw a small bridge ahead, with wide bars built across it. It made you smile a bit at its redundancy as you stepped over a few fallen branches in your walkway. 

A sharp crack pierced the air after you had gone a ways, sending an eerie chill through you. Frisk had also flinched at the sound, looking up drowsily from your neck. You glanced behind you, seeing that all the branches that you had stepped over were now broken, even the thicker ones. You were rigid as you looked over the debris, taking in a deep breath to carefully survey your surroundings. 

Nothing. 

Frisk could feel how tense you were as you continued, your pace quicker than before, but not quite a run. The bridge wasn’t too far now, but they stopped you, wiggling in your arms as a sign that they wanted to be put down. You reluctantly allowed it, letting them slide down from your arms and gain their bearings on their own two feet before progressing. They kept hold of your hand, keeping up with you until you had finally reached the bridge. 

Then you both stopped.

It wasn’t that you _wanted_ to stop, but your feet felt like they were being held in place. Frisk was the same beside you, their grip on your hand relaxing. 

Footsteps echoed behind you, and you tensed. Your mind immediately conjured up the scariest creature imaginable, stalking towards you slowly, teasingly, knowing that you would be unable to stop it. Anxiety built in your gut as you felt someone- or something, get closer. The footfalls stopped, but the presence behind you remained. The suspense was killing you now, and every nerve in your body screamed at you to turn around. 

Frisk did so first, making the creature behind you shuffle a bit in surprise. Silence fell between you, save for the pulse in your throat. Frisk shifted out of the corner of your eye. 

You didn’t know what you were expecting, but a fart noise was not one of them. 

“heh. the whoopee-cushion-in-the-hand trick is always funny. seems like you’ve already heard this one before though, huh? anyways, who’s your friend, kid?”

Frisk tugged at the edge of your shirt, but you were already in the middle of turning around, mind spinning as you realized you recognized that voice. 

You met Sans’ eye lights with a small gasp. A vivid memory of watching the skeleton dust before you flashed in your mind, and you flinched. 

Sans’ grin lessened at your reaction. “aw, c’mon bud, don’t tell me this ol’ bag of bones scared you out of your skin.”

Despite the horrible memory, you smiled. “No, sorry. I just...it’s nice to meet you.” You extend your hand for him as you introduce yourself and Frisk. Sans introduced himself and shakes your hand without the whoopee cushion. 

“so you two are human, right? that’s hilarious.” Sans continued. “i’m actually supposed to be on the lookout for humans, but i’m not really interested in capturing anybody. my brother, on the other hand, is a human-hunting fanatic. speaking of which, i think that’s him up ahead.”

“Your brother?” You asked as he gestured for you and Frisk to move forward to cross the bridge. 

Once on the other side, you took note of the stand erected on the side of the path, along with a small assortment of rocks and a lamp that oddly enough looked like Frisk. 

As if you shared that thought, Frisk let go of your hand to situate themselves behind the lamp. It baffled you how well hidden they were. But then again, you wondered why they felt the need to hide themselves in the first place. 

Sans looked you over with an odd look and a lazy shrug. “sorry, kid. don’t have any convenient hiding spots for you.”

”SANS!”

The exuberant voice made you jump, stepping closer to Sans as another skeleton came bouncing up over the horizon. Even though he stopped quite a ways from you, it was quite easy to tell that he towered over you. Strangely enough though, you didn’t feel threatened by the lanky figure. 

“SANS WHAT ARE YOU DOING? YOU STILL HAVEN’T RECALIBRATED YOUR PUZZLES, AND IT’S BEEN 3 DAYS!” 

Sans wasn’t fazed. “sorry paps. guess I got too caught up in catching humans.”

“DON’T PLAY WITH ME SANS. I WOULD KNOW A HUMAN IF I SAW ONE. I _AM_ THE GREAT PAPYRUS, AFTER ALL!” 

Sans nodded to you, and Papyrus followed his gaze. You waved shyly. Papyrus stared at you with deep scrutiny before realization dawned on him. 

“WAIT! OH MY GOD, SANS YOU WERE SERIOUS?? YOU ACTUALLY DID YOUR JOB FOR ONCE?!”

”heh, what can I say, bro? i have an eye for these things.” 

“DON’T RUIN THIS FOR ME SANS. I THINK I’M GOING TO CRY!”

”don’t cry in front of the human, pap.”

”YOU’RE RIGHT SANS! I MUSTN’T SHOW WEAKNESS!” Papyrus straightened himself, thumping his broad chest with his fist as he posed dramatically in front of you. “HUMAN! PREPARE TO BE CAPTURED BY THE GREAT PAPYRUS! CONTINUE IF YOU DARE!”

Papyrus paused suddenly, his dramatic flair deflating a bit as something occurred to him. “Actually...I Don’t Have Anything Prepared For You To Be Truly Japed By...” he mulled over it a moment, his voice only slightly quieter as he talked to himself. You raised a brow, glancing at Sans. The smaller skeleton looked like he was about to fall asleep standing. 

“HUMAN!” Papyrus snatched back your attention. “BECAUSE I NEED TIME TO PUT TOGETHER A PUZZLE THAT WILL PROPERLY CAPTURE YOU, YOU MAY STILL PROCEED, BUT I ASK THAT YOU DO SO SLOWLY, SO AS NOT TO RUSH MY CREATIVE GENIUS.” 

“...Okay?” 

Papyrus nodded triumphantly at your “agreement”, posing once more. “PERFECT! I SHALL MEET YOU UP AHEAD THEN! EVENTUALLY!”

With that, Papyrus took off back the way he came, cackling to himself. You couldn’t help but chuckle softly. Papyrus was the farthest thing from intimidating, but his enthusiasm was admirable. 

Sans also chuckled. “papyrus is so cool.”

Frisk hummed their agreement as they emerged from behind the lamp, their face stretched with an excited grin. You mirrored their expression, genuinely curious to see what Papyrus had in store for you. 

“welp, guess i’ll let you two carry on then. i’ll meet’cha up ahead.” Sans said, sauntering off in the opposite direction of Papyrus. You looked over to Frisk for an explanation, and they shrugged. You decided not to question it too much, allowing Frisk to take your hand again to lead you forward into the Underground. 

 


	8. Puzzles and Spaghetti

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Papyrus is indeed Cool. 
> 
> And Sans is perplexed.

The familiar wave of deja vu that washed over Sans was not quite as bitter as it usually was. 

It was easy enough to remember Frisk. After all, they had met more times than either of them could count. It was a never ending circle. But now, the timeline seemed to be seasoned with a dash of unpredictability. There was something unusually unique about her. And familiar. But the skeleton was almost sure he had never met her before. If he did, he would've remembered, right? 

He was still questioning it as he repeated her name under his breath once again. It was indeed familiar to him, yet unfamiliar at the same time.

It was a weird feeling that was impossible to shake off, so he followed the two humans during their trek through Snowdin Forest, occasionally making an appearance with Papyrus during his attempts to "capture" them. It seemed she caught onto the fact that despite Papyrus' attempts, he was virtually harmless to the both of you, and willingly played along. He had to admit though, that he didn't find much humor in the concern that flitted across her features as Papyrus revealed his "puzzle" to them as they stood over the deep canyon. He too let himself relax when the devious-looking devices were put away, and you were free to cross without further delay. 

And when they finally reached Snowdin Town, and faced off with his brother in a three-way confrontation, he was relieved to find that she prohibited Frisk from taking any turns, like she knew what the small child was capable of. The encounter ended swiftly with you offering to be friends with his brother, and the indescribable joy that etched itself across Papyrus' face put Sans just a little bit more at ease. 

With the new unpredictable factors she brought, Sans was starting to gain the tiniest bit of hope that this timeline would be different. 

 

 

 

 

 

You chuckled a bit as you trailed behind Papyrus, who was carrying Frisk around on his shoulders as he laughed gleefully.

"WOWIE! NOT ONE, BUT TWO NEW FRIENDS! AT THIS RATE, MY FRIEND LIST MIGHT ACTUALLY REACH THE DOUBLE DIGITS!" Papyrus beamed. Frisk hummed in agreement, clinging to the tall skeleton as they bounced on his shoulders. Eventually he stopped in front of the big cabin, pushing the door open for you to enter. Once you passed, he ducked his head under the threshold to keep Frisk from bumping their head.

"WELCOME TO MY HUMBLE ABODE!" Papyrus announced, putting Frisk down on their own two feet. "I AM SURE THAT YOU WILL FIND DELIGHT IN THE TASTEFUL DECOR THAT MY BROTHER AND I HAVE PUT TOGETHER." 

"It's lovely Papyrus." you smile up at him. His eye lights shimmer giddily. 

"THANK YOU! WAIT UNTIL YOU SEE THE KITCHEN!" He said, taking you by the hand and leading you through the living area to the little kitchen in the back. He then began to point out different aspects of the kitchen, including some doors that led out to the balcony, before going off on a tangent about food at the delicate but passionate art of cooking. 

You however, had been distracted from the moment you stepped into the house. It looked a little bit different than the first time you had been here. Little post-it notes and a sock sat beside the TV stand. Picture frames of what looked to be a younger Sans and Papyrus were hung on the walls, along with little mementos that sat on the shelves above your head. None of that was present when you were here before, and although you could probably guess why, you couldn't bring yourself to mentally confront that possibility. Papyrus was here now, and you needed to focus yourself on that. 

When you looked up, Papyrus was looking down at you expectantly, his brow bone lifted.

"What?"

"YOU MADE A FUNNY NOISE. I THOUGHT THAT YOU WERE TRYING TO GET MY ATTENTION, SO I AM GIVING IT TO YOU." 

"What noise?" 

A low grumble from your stomach made you sigh. "Oh. That noise. I'm just hungry, Papyrus. I haven't had anything to eat since we came out of the Ruins."

Papyrus squealed and you cringed at the pitch. "THIS IS FANTASTIC! ABSOLUTELY PERFECT! I COULDN'T HAVE ASKED FOR A MORE PERFECT DAY!" His enthusiasm brought Frisk into the kitchen, curious to see what had excited the skeleton. Papyrus sat the both of you at the dining table to keep you in his sight as he prepped the kitchen.

”DIVINE!! THIS WHOLE DAY IS CAUSE FOR CELEBRATION! I MUST PREPARE MY FINEST DISH!”

You looked at Frisk, who was watching Papyrus with an amused grin. “Spaghetti?” You guessed. Frisk nodded, and you inwardly cringed a bit. Disregarding the frozen plate of pasta Papyrus had tried to capture you with earlier, you still remembered what Papyrus’ spaghetti tasted like when Sans served you a plate last time. And while, yes, it was edible, it wasn’t something that you were excited to taste again.

A bright light interrupted your thought, and you peeked from your place at the table into the kitchen with curiosity. 

Tall flames from the stovetop threatened to lick the ceiling, engulfing the pot of water Papyrus had set on top of it. You shrieked, jumping from your seat. Papyrus seemed perplexed as you shut off the stove, grabbing a towel off the counter beside him to try to fan the smoke towards the kitchen window. 

“Papyrus, why was the stove that high?!” You turned to him. He blinked, staring you down for a moment as he tried to understand. 

“But Undyne Said That The Flames Should Represent My Passion, And My Passion Is Very Bright And Hot.” He answered, his usual exuberant pitch lowered a few pegs in his confusion. 

“You...you can’t...” you struggle to find the right words as you slowly start to calm. “You might set the house on fire, Papyrus. That’s kinda dangerous.”

”OH, BUT I COOK LIKE THIS ALL THE TIME!” He perks, trying to reassure you. His efforts are in vain however as you look over at the charred remains of the stove top. 

“I can see that...” you trail off, rubbing the back of your neck. It would be rude to tell Papyrus what he can and can’t do in his own home, but it would be reckless to allow things to continue this way. He seemed to have his heart set on making you food, so maybe if you were clever enough, you could fix both problems. 

“What if I help you cook?” You offer. “Maybe I can...show you some insight as to how humans cook?”

It sounded lame, even to you, but Papyrus looked like he was going to burst from his newfound excitement. “COOKING?? WITH FRIENDS??? I WAS WRONG!! THIS DAY HAS JUST GOTTEN EXPONENTIALLY BETTER!!”

You almost got whiplash from how sudden the skeleton pulled you into a hug, spinning you and him around the small kitchen space before setting you down. You wobbled dizzily, but relief filled you as you moved to help guide Papyrus with safer cooking habits. 

 

 

It was a success. Even Sans seemed surprised at the improvement of Papyrus’ dish. Granted, the noodles were a little overdone, and the pasta sauce was almost burnt in Papyrus’ eagerness, but it was still an improvement nonetheless.

You helped Papyrus clear the table after you all ate. Sans sat with Frisk, cranking out pasta puns left and right to Frisk’s amusement and Papyrus’ agony. You chuckled at them, rinsing the dirtied dishes and setting them in the sink per Papyrus’ request. 

When all was clean, you scooped Frisk into your arms. “Thanks for the meal, guys. We’ll let ourselves out.”

Both brothers perked with confusion. “WHERE ARE YOU GOING? IT’S GETTING LATE?” Papyrus asked.

“We’re just gonna go down to the inn.” Youexplained. “It looked nice enough, and I should have enough for the two of us to stay the night.”

“NONSENSE! AS OUR NEWEST FRIENDS, IT WOULD BE RIDICULOUS FOR US TO MAKE YOU SLEEP AT THE INN WHEN YOU CAN STAY IN A PLACE WITH SO MUCH MORE CLASS. YOU CAN STAY WITH US TONIGHT!” Papyrus gasped loudly. “WE CAN HAVE A SLEEPOVER!!”

“A sleepover?” You asked. “Are you guys sure? Like, we wouldn’t be intruding?”

“NONSENSE! TINY FRISK CAN SLEEP IN MY AWESOME ROOM, AND YOU CAN SLEEP IN SANS’ ROOM!”

Sans’ room? You glanced over questioningly to the other skeleton. 

He shrugged lazily. “i’ll sleep on the couch. ‘s no big deal.”

“Well...” you looked back to Papyrus, who was giving you a pleading look, his dark sockets shimmering magically. Frisk bounced excitedly in your arms, nodding their agreement. You sighed with a grin. “Alright.”

 

 

You let Frisk settle into the thick pile of blankets and fluff that Papyrus dumped onto his race car bed, tucking them in and smoothing back their hair. They looked content, smiling up at you with half lidded eyes. 

“You doing okay?” You ask them quietly. They hadn’t said much since your first encounter with Papyrus, and insisted that you took control of every encounter. They were most active during the meal with the brothers, laughing with Sans and complimenting you and Papyrus. It felt natural. It made your heart swell to think about it.

Frisk nodded, leaning into your touch as you caressed their cheek. “Good. Just wanted to make sure. If anything happens, you know where I am.”

They grabbed your hand before you could get up, and you saw hesitation in their eyes. “What is it?”

“Could you sing to me?” They asked. 

You blinked, too surprised to respond immediately. They hadn’t made such a request in years. 

“What Is This I Hear About A Song?” Papyrus entered the room with a softer voice. He had traded his battle armor for some soft pajamas adorned with little bones, complete with a little hat sitting atop his skull. 

“She’s gonna sing to us.” Frisk grinned as they cozied themself in his bed. Papyrus looked eager as well. 

“Really?? That Is Good, Because Sans Has Already Fallen Asleep On The Couch. He Didn’t Even Finish Setting It Up!” He tisked with disappointment as he shut his door behind him, then going to bury himself in the big nest of blankets he crafted for himself. “This Will Be A Great Replacement For My Usual Bedtime Story!”

“I see.” You pursed your lips, exhaling through your nose. You supposed it wouldn’t hurt; Frisk never cared about the condition of your voice, but you weren’t sure if that would extend to the skeleton nested on the floor beside you would feel the same. 

Still, you don’t have the heart to argue, not when Frisk and Papyrus are staring at you expectantly. You clear your throat, taking a minute to remember the words to the song you used to sing to Frisk when they were younger.

It starts off rusty, and you pause after the first few notes to regain the tune in your head. Frisk pats your hand patiently, and you smile. You start again, the song flowing easier this time. 

By the time you’ve finished, Frisk is asleep. You make sure they’re tucked in and press a soft kiss to the top of their head. They shift a little, mumbling softly as they roll over and fall asleep again.

Papyrus is sleeping as well. It’s endearing to see him curled up in his blankets, his arms clutching a tiny teddy bear to his chest. His nose cavity whistles softly as he snores in his sleep. You make sure he’s tucked in comfortably before you exit the room, shutting the door behind you. 

You almost trip over Sans as you turn to face the hall. He’s slumped over against the wall, snoring heavily. Without his jacket, he looks unusually small, and it doesn’t help that he’s slouched over himself. You debate for a moment whether or not you should move him, ultimately deciding to leave him be. You carefully step over him and make your way to the room at the end of the hall. 

Papyrus insisted on tidying up the room before you entered, and even with his last ditch effort to make it suitable for guests, you can see that this room has seen better days. The bed is just a mattress in the corner, with a couple blankets folded over it. There’s a pile of clothes draped over a treadmill in the opposite corner. And somehow, twirling about against the wall is a little tornado of sorts. With closer examination, you see that there’s a strange assortment of junk swirling around in the tornado, including socks and trash pieces. It’s strange, but not necessarily the strangest thing you’ve seen.

Curiosity quenched for the moment, you situate yourself on the mattress. Pulling the comforter over you, you curl up on your side and let yourself relax.  


	9. Late Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You talk with Sans.

A few hours pass and you’re still awake. You don’t know how long it’s been since you’ve last slept, but despite that, you’re restless right now. You throw the comforter off of you and get to your feet, wrapping a smaller blanket around your shoulders.

When you step out into the hallway, Sans isn’t there anymore. When you head downstairs, you find him curled up on the couch. Papyrus wasn’t exaggerating earlier- the blankets and pillows set aside for Sans’ sleep on the couch were thrown haphazardly onto it, and most of it was already threatening to fall onto the floor. He didn’t seem to mind it.

You tiptoe quietly past him towards the kitchen, curious about the balcony Papyrus had pointed out earlier. The hinges squeak softly as you pull the door open, and a brisk breeze caresses your face. You shut the door behind you, pulling the blanket tighter around you as you step out into the cold. The balcony is cleared from snow, with exception to the railing. There’s not much here otherwise, but you weren’t really expecting much either. You settle for brushing off some snow from the railing, then leaning over it a bit as you look over the town.

It _feels_ late, even without the sun or moon for reference. You haven’t seen a clock anywhere either. But there’s a heaviness in your bones that tells you that it’s late. Above you, there’s an array of sparkling lights. If you didn’t know you were underground, you’d have mistaken such lights as stars. They were pretty, sure, but you couldn’t help but miss the real night sky. 

There’s no one out either- all the residents you had met earlier were now cozy in their homes as they rest for the night. The silence that weighs in the air doesn’t help your mood, either. Instead it reminds you of the first time you walked through this town, and that is definitely not a thought you want to have right now. 

A soft squeak sounds off behind you, but you don’t bother to turn around. 

“Did I wake you up?”

”nah. you okay?” Sans asks as he stands in the doorway.

“Yeah, I’m fine.” You respond quietly. Sans doesn’t say anything, so you glance over your shoulder at him. 

He doesn't look convinced. “you look like you got a lot on your mind.”

“It’s just been a long day.” You shrug. “Couldn’t sleep.”

”i see. mind if i keep you company then?” He offers, leaning against the door frame. 

You consider his offer for a moment. “I wouldn’t be interrupting your sleep time, would I?”

“i take naps throughout the day.” Sans shrugs with a light chuckle. “besides, papyrus says i sleep too much.”

You smile a little, touched by his offer. “Then I guess I don’t mind.”

”cool. do ya mind if we go inside though? kinda chilly out here.” he makes a show out of shivering, rubbing the bare bones of his arms.

”What, you mean the cold doesn’t go right through you?” You tease with a snort, stepping back inside with him. 

He feigns an indignant expression. “heyy that’s my line. it’s not _ice_  to steal people’s punchlines.”

”Oh please, those puns are _so_ predictable.” You giggle as you take a seat at the dining table. 

 “there’s _snow_ problem in having predicable humor.” Sans winked. You rolled your eyes, sitting back in your chair. Sans stood awkwardly for a moment, silence falling between the two of you. 

 

“i’ll uh...make some tea.” he excused himself to the kitchen. 

 

 

 

 

The water was taking forever to boil. Sans tapped his phalanges impatiently against the box of tea. 

Contrary to what the human may have thought, she didn’t wake Sans up. It was hard for someone to wake him up once he was down for the count- Papyrus had confirmed that fact a long while ago.  No, something else disturbed Sans’ sleep tonight, just as it’s done every other night. But fortunately, he didn’t have to be alone with his thoughts tonight. 

It was really late, and Sans was convinced that something had to be bothering her if she was still up now. She looked ragged in her exhausted state, leaned against the railing and staring into space. Even when she laughed at his jokes, her smile didn’t quite reach her eyes. 

Even though he was sure neither of them would talk about what’s really bothering them, it’d be better than being alone.

The water finally brought itself to a boil, so Sans prepped the tea into two small mugs. The excess water was left on the stove as Sans carried the cups out of the kitchen.

She thanked him quietly as he slid her mug in front of her, taking it between her hands. She stared down at it as he took a seat across from her. He stared down at his own mug for a moment, watching the water dilute the tea leaves. 

The silence between the two of them was starting to become suffocating.

Sans cleared his throat. “so, how’d you and frisk end up down here? if you don’t mind my askin’?”

She stared down at her tea, her mouth forming a deep frown, and Sans inwardly cringed. What a way to start the conversation, right?

“I went looking for Frisk.” She started with a sigh. “They ran off, and didn’t come back for a few days. I went looking for them, and I fell too.”

“you and the kid are close then?”

She nods. “I’m their older sister. I’m kind of the only family they have left now.”

Sans nods in understanding, lazily stirring his own tea. “kinda like paps and i.”

“You guys don’t have any other family?” She asked curiously. She finally looked up from her cup towards him. 

He shrugs. “been like this long as either of us can remember.”

“Was it rough? Being on your own, I mean?“

”it wasn’t necessarily rough. i mean, the town came together and helped make sure paps and i were safe.” Sans explained. ”i guess the hardest part was raising my bro.”

”I understand that.” She said softly. “I had to do the same with Frisk. They’re still pretty young, so I can’t imagine they’d remember our parents that well.”

Sans noticed her expression was unreadable as she spoke. She paused after she finished, staring back at her cup. She stirred its contents a bit, taking a sip. 

“I wonder if that had something to do with their running away?” She wondered aloud, looking up at him. He didn’t answer. She looked away and sighed. “I just...think back sometimes, and wonder if there was anything I could’ve done to change things. In reality, I know a lot of things were out of my control but...I didn’t want Frisk to be exposed to a world like that.”

He understood more than he could probably say in that moment. As far back as he could recall, Papyrus had always been his everything. He sacrificed a lot for his younger brother, including his own childhood. To see that someone else shared that sort of experience comforted him a bit. 

“I don’t know what I did wrong, though.” She continued softly. Tears started to gather in the corners of her eyes. 

”woah, who said you did something wrong?” Sans raised a brow bone. 

“I don’t know. Things were going well, and then suddenly...Frisk just up and disappears. And now they’re...different. I don’t know why or how, and I don’t know how to help them. I just,” She wipes her eyes. “I hoped that if I managed to get them back home, things could go back to the way they were.”

He wasn’t sure how to respond. It seemed she knew more than she let on about Frisk, but digging into the subject seemed to distress her. 

So he let that thought drop, instead settling for trying to comfort her. “hey, i know it ain’t easy takin’ care of a kid. but you said so yourself: a lot of things were out of your control. th’ kid’s gonna make their own decisions, and ya can’t blame yourself for what happens.”

_it might just be easier not to care,_ he thought to himself. 

“i get the same thoughts ‘bout Papyrus every now and again.“ he admitted. “probably the best thing to do is focus on what you can do for ‘em now, instead of worryin’ about what you could’ve done.”

_hypocrite..._

She considered his words for a bit. “Yeah...I guess you’re right.” 

_was he?_

She downed some more of her tea. “I’m sorry for getting so personal. But I appreciate you listening. Sorry it had to take away time for you to sleep, though.”

He dismissed her apologies with a slight wave of his hand and a slight grin. “don’t worry ‘bout it.”

 

 

You smiled at Sans, finishing up the last bit of your drink in the silence that fell between you two. It wasn’t as awkward as earlier, and now you were finally starting to feel sleepy. 

“Thank you for this. I feel better now.” You say as you stand. Sans stays seated. 

“heh, i didn’t really do anything.”

”Well, I appreciate your encouragement.” You say. You disappear into the kitchen briefly to set your cup in the sink. Sans hadn’t moved to get up, staring down at his cup. 

“And for the record, I think you did a fantastic job raising Papyrus.” You assure him, patting him on his shoulder. 

A sharp shock emits from your fingertips and you both jump. You snatch your hand away from him, your heart pounding from the startle. 

“Oh geez! Sorry about that! I hate when I do that.” You shake your hand a bit, examining your fingertips. It was a hearty shock, and your hand felt a bit tingly after that. Strange that you built up such a charge just walking from the kitchen, but stranger things _have_ happened. 

You look up towards Sans, flinching a bit when you realize he’s gone. His sudden disappearance puts you on edge a bit, and you glance around for him. You were fairly sure he could teleport at this point, seeing that he’s done this disappearing act before in front of you and Frisk. Whatever had prompted it, you weren’t sure. Maybe they didn’t have static shocks like that here? You’d have to apologize and explain it to him the next time you see him.

You don’t worry about it anymore, instead heading back upstairs. 

When you enter Sans’ room, a new golden star shines brightly besides the trash tornado. You reach for it. 

_*Sans’ encouragement fills you with Determination._

**_S A V E._ **

 

 

 

 

 

 


	10. Separation.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fishy phone calls.
> 
> Lunch at Grillby’s. 
> 
> Attacked by Crazy Killer Fish™
> 
> We should(n’t) split up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just wanted to thank you for all your comments and kudos. It’s been really enjoyable getting back to writing again, and I’m happy that a lot of you are enjoying the story. 
> 
> Feel free to check out my tumblrs!
> 
> https://www.tumblr.com/blog/wholesomeremorse (main blog)
> 
> https://www.tumblr.com/blog/writinginmorsecode (Writing blog - also will contain extra scenes/fanart in the future!)
> 
> Please enjoy the chapter, and comments are always appreciated!

You still felt tired when you woke up the next day. But the exhaustion that previously weighed you down had lightened up some, and you were eventually able to pull yourself from the mattress. 

Downstairs, the kitchen was already alive with energy. Frisk sat perched on Papyrus’ shoulders again as the skeleton bounced around the kitchen preparing breakfast. 

“Good morning.” You greeted them with a smile. 

Papyrus and Frisk turned to face you in the doorway. “GOOD MORNING, FRISK’S SISTER! IT IS GOOD TO SEE THAT YOU ARE UP!“ he grinned as he set Frisk down on their own two feet. The child quickly ran up to you to greet you with a tight hug around your waist. You returned the hug. 

“BREAKFAST IS READY!” Papyrus announced, setting three places at the table. You and Frisk sat along with Papyrus to eat. 

A bowl of oatmeal sat in front of each of you, each decorated with little white eggs. “Are these..?”

”DINOSAUR EGGS?” Papyrus finished for you. He giggled gleefully as he shoveled a spoonful out of his own bowl. “YOU WOULD BE CORRECT, FRIEND! THIS IS MY ABSOLUTE FAVORITE FOOD, AND IT BRINGS ME SO MUCH JOY TO BE ABLE TO SHARE IT WITH YOU!”

Papyrus’ excitement was adorable as he ate his breakfast, checking each of the eggs and naming each dinosaur with surprising accuracy. Frisk combed through their meal, eating each individual egg before starting to scoop spoonfuls into their mouth. You weren't the biggest fan of oatmeal, honestly. But just after the first bite, a burst of energy filled you, with an excitement that you've never felt before rising to the surface. You relished in the joy the oatmeal gave you, surprised that such a simple meal could hold so much magical emotion. With a wide grin you wondered if this is how Papyrus felt all the time.

"Where's Sans?" Frisk asked between bites. 

Papyrus hummed, looking over at the empty seat next to him. "WELL, SINCE MY BROTHER IS NOT HERE, NOR CAN HE BE UPSTAIRS, I CONCLUDE THAT HE IS EITHER AT THAT GREASE TRAP DOWN THE STREET, OR GETTING A HEAD START ON SWINDLING PEOPLE TO BUY WATER SAUSAGES HE CLAIMS TO BE HOTDOGS."

"You don't like hot dogs?" you asked. 

Papyrus' face scrunched a bit. "EVERY MEAL CONSISTED OF THOSE THINGS WHEN WE WERE YOUNGER. I WOULD MUCH PREFER ANYTHING ELSE THAN EAT ANOTHER HOTDOG IN MY LIFE."

"Fair enough," you nod, savoring the last few bites of oatmeal on your plate. 

"I PROPOSE THAT WE GO ON AN OUTING TODAY!" Papyrus announced as he finished his bowl. "THERE ARE MANY SIGHTS IN SNOWDIN THAT ARE ALMOST AS GREAT AS I AM. IT WOULD BE A SHAME IF I NEGLECTED TO TAKE YOU TO BASK IN THEIR ALMOST-GREATNESS!" 

"I think that sounds nice, Papyrus." you agree. Spending a little time in the town wouldn't hurt. And by the look on Frisk's face, they seemed to agree. 

"PERFECT! I ALREADY KNOW THE FIRST PLACE-" 

The three of you jumped at the violent ringing coming from Papyrus' shorts. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a cell phone. You noticed a nervous gleam in his eye as he read the caller ID. His sockets met your eyes for a second before excusing himself and leaving the room. 

He didn't go very far, because you and Frisk could still make out the conversation. 

"Hello?" 

Silence. 

"...I Do Not Recall Sending You Messages Regarding Fallen Humans..." Papyrus said with a nervous cough. "In Fact, I Believe That Annoying Dog Stole My Phone Again, And Strategically Typed Out Those Urgent-Sounding Messages To You While I Was Distracted." 

You knew he was lying, but even so the waver in his usually confident voice gave him away. You assumed by Papyrus' silence that the person on the other end of the phone thought so too. 

"Okay...I Shall Meet You There Then." 

You waited for Papyrus to come bouncing back into the room. Instead, he poked his skull into the room. Sweat coated his skull as he gave a ~~non~~ -reassuring grin towards the two of you.

"ON SECOND THOUGHT, THIS HOUSE IS WAY MORE INTERESTING AND GRAND THAN ANYTHING OUTSIDE! SO I WILL LEAVE YOU HERE TO EXPLORE THE NOOKS AND CRANNIES AND I WILL BE BACK LATER TO QUIZ YOU ON WHAT YOU'VE FOUND!" 

You didn't have a moment to protest as the tall skeleton left once again, his boots thumping against the hardwood floor as he hastily exited the house. The door shut tight behind him, and silence filled the air. 

You glanced at Frisk to confirm that, yes, that did just happen, and something was wrong. Frisk sighed a bit, pushing their bowl away from them as they moved to get up from their seat. "Where are you going?" 

"We gotta go see Sans." they said simply. 

"But Papyrus wanted us to stay here...for some reason. Do you know who was on the phone? Has that happened before?" 

"I think I know who it was, but it'll be okay." they tried to assure you. They took your hand and pulled you out of your seat. While you were indeed hesitant to ignore Papyrus' request, you did remember that Frisk had a better grasp on the situation than you did. As long as they didn't hurt anybody, you would allow them to guide you through the Underground. And if that included leaving the skeleton house when one of them subtly implied that you shouldn't, well...

You'll go along with it for now. 

 

The walk through town was pleasant. Monsters regarded you both kindly with smiles and waves. You returned their gestures, pleased to see so many friendly faces. It warmed your heart to see everyone so cheerful. 

The brisk air eventually merged into a warmer humidity, and you rolled your sleeves up a bit as you continued forward. Not a word had been spoken between you or Frisk as they guided you forward. You were grateful for the distant sound of rushing water that filled the silence, squeezing their hand comfortably. Their grip on your hand tightened as well, right before they veered off the path so suddenly that you fell to your knees among a thick brush of weeds. Letting go of your sibling's hand, you stretched your arms out instinctively to catch yourself before you planted face-first into the mud. The plants that weren't crushed under your weight grazed against your exposed skin, and you waved a hand in front of your face to brush away any that threatened to tickle your nose. You made a noise of protest towards Frisk, who shushed you immediately. While you sat on hands and knees, they were crouched next to you, gently pushing aside the tall weeds and making a little pathway for you to follow them in. You grumbled to yourself, crawling behind them as you tried to re-convince yourself that letting Frisk lead was a good idea.

They stopped suddenly, twisting their head to you and putting a finger to their lips. You heeded their instruction, keeping silent as they leaned forward a bit. They pulled some of the stalks aside to let you both see through the little window they had created. 

In the near distance, you could make out a figure standing silently in the shadows. What little light there was in the area glinted off their body. With a squint, you could make out the thick armor that covered every inch of their body. Or at least you assumed it was armor. It could've been scales or something attached to their actual body and you wouldn't have been any wiser to it. 

Frisk elbowed you a bit, nodding towards another figure approaching. The lanky silhouette resembled Papyrus, but the body language was all wrong, His usual confident posture was replaced by a meeker demeanor. Hands were retracted in front of his chest instead of planted at his hips. Even his stride was slower, more careful, almost like he was confronting a sleeping bear or something. 

He stopped a few feet from the figure. "H-HERE I AM, UNDYNE. YOU...WANTED TO SEE ME?" 

His voice was louder than it was on the phone, but the certainty of it was not there. The other figure's voice was too quiet for you to hear. 

"D-DID I FIGHT THE HUMANS...?" Papyrus paused. "OF COURSE I DID BUT..."

"DID I CAPTURE THEM? ...No...I Didn't...

"BUT! I AM PLEASE TO ANNOUNCE THAT THE HUMANS ARE ACTUALLY REALLY NICE! THEY-" 

The other figure stomped, making Papyrus flinch at their aggressive stance. You could vaguely hear their voice, but couldn't make out any of their words. 

Whatever they said, it seemed to deflate Papyrus even more. 

"Wh-You're Going To Take Their Souls Yourself? But! You Shouldn't! I Mean..." Papyrus sounded torn, desperate as he tried to convince this person not to go after his new friends. He stopped mid-sentence, taking a step or two back away from the figure. They spoke a little longer before Papyrus' shoulder sunk a bit.

"I-I Understand. I'll Help You Any Way I Can..."

The other monster seemed satisfied with his response, since their stance relaxed a bit. They dismissed Papyrus, who walked away with his head hung low. Your own heart clenched with despair, dread pooling in your gut. This monster, "Undyne", seemed to have it out for you and Frisk. You'd never imagine someone as boisterous and intense as Papyrus would be reduced to this timid, soft-spoken skeleton that you watched shuffle off. A part of you was angry at this Undyne, while another part of you feared them. You grabbed Frisk's shoulder to steady yourself, and they let the weeds fall back into place, effectively concealing you both. 

They also looked upset at the display. You frowned deeply, pulling them towards you in a brief hug. Maybe you could go back and comfort Papyrus? Let him know that you weren't going to let Undyne push him around like that-

A shrill ringtone disrupted the silence. 

_Your phone-!_

You forgot that Toriel gave you this old beat-up flip phone back in the Ruins. It sat undisturbed in your back pocket, so small and insignificant before that you completely disregarded its existence. You regretted it now, clawing at your pants to rip the screaming device from your pocket. You didn't bother to look at the caller ID. Frantically you opened the device and rejected the call, fumbling to silence it. 

Your own heart now replaced the ringtone, thumping so loudly in your chest that you were sure Undyne could hear it. Heavy metal footsteps approached the shrubbery you had hidden yourselves in. You clung to Frisk desperately, shaking as your mind raced to consider all the possible ways Undyne was going to kill you and the small child in your arms. Tears sprung to your eyes and you clenched them tightly, bracing yourself for this menacing figure to discover you. 

Another body rustled the stalks around you, and you flinched with a squeak, trying to cover Frisk's body with your own. 

"Undyne!! Oh stars I can't believe it's really you!" a different voice squealed. You held your breath, unsure of this new development. 

"Whaat? There's a human out here! That's so cool!!" The voice paused. "But I wanna see you fight them! Please?? ...Fine, I'll go home..." 

The clunking of armor retreated into the distance after that, but you didn't move a muscle. It wasn't until Frisk wiggled uncomfortably in your arms that you released them. They seemed sure that Undyne was gone now, standing to their full height and offering you a hand. You ignored it at first, fist bunched in your shirt as you tried to calm your frantic breathing. Through the thin fabric you could feel your heartbeat. Your whole body was tense as you struggled to regain your composure. 

Eventually you accepted Frisk's hand and let them help you to your feet. You let out a deep sigh, willing the stress from your body. "That was too close."

"I'll say! You almost got to meet Undyne too!" 

You glanced in the direction of the voice that had saved you. It belonged to a little yellow dinosaur monster, who stood just an inch or two under Frisk. Their bright eyes looked the two of you over as they bounced eagerly on the balls of their feet. 

"Man! Wouldn't you give anything to watch Undyne beat up some humans?? She's so cool!!" Their tiny body vibrated with their excitement. "Just a few more steps and you would've met her too! Sorry I got in the way, though. I got too excited from being so close to her. But can you blame me??" 

You and Frisk didn't respond, but it didn't seem like the little monster was waiting on you too. They turned suddenly, running off. "C'mon!" they cried over their shoulder. "Let's go watch her beat up some bad guys!" 

You weren't too eager to move forward, but Frisk encouraged you on. You held their hand tightly as you followed the dinosaur child. 

The pathway opened up into a spacious room-like cavern. A few monsters were gathered here, too occupied to acknowledge your presence. 

Frisk let go of your hand, stepping forward to look at a tall iridescent blue flower. You moved to follow, when a violent vibration made you jump. You snatched the flip phone from your pocket yet again. This time, you looked at the caller ID.

Papyrus. 

You answered it this time. “Hello? Papyrus?”

”OH GOOD YOU ANSWERED!” He sounded relieved. “I TRIED CALLING EARLIER, BUT I GOT VOICEMAIL. I WAS TRYING TO TELL YOU THAT, DUE TO CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES, IT WAS BEST FOR YOU TO LEAVE THE HOUSE, BUT IT SEEMS YOU WERE ONE STEP AHEAD OF ME!” 

“What’s going on, Papyrus?” You asked with concern. 

“NOTHING TO WORRY ABOUT!” He laughed nervously. You huffed lightly. 

“Papyrus...”

”FINE!” He relented. “I Have A Particular Friend...And Her Opinion Regarding Humans Is Pretty...Murder-y...”

You swallowed. “So...what do we do?”

”EASY!” His voice regained its usual exuberant tone. Honestly, you were starting to feel a bit whiplashed from how quickly he switched tones. “WE JUST HAVE TO DISTRACT UNDYNE FROM EVER SEEING YOU TWO!”

”That doesn’t sound so easy.”  You muttered skeptically. 

He grunted. “IT’S A GOOD ENOUGH PLAN UNTIL UNDYNE FORGETS ABOUT YOU.”

”is that papyrus?”

You jumped, shrieking as you turned to see Sans standing behind you.

”OH GOOD YOU’RE WITH SANS. HE’LL MAKE SURE YOU’RE BOTH SAFE!” Papyrus said in a matter-of-fact tone. “I MUST BE GOING NOW! I SHALL SEE YOU AND TINY FRISK LATER!”

With that, the other line went dead and you sighed. 

“what’s up?”

You pocketed the old phone. “Honestly, I don’t know anymore.”

”sounds like you need a break.” he observed, his grin casual. “luckily i was just about to take my government mandated break.” He jerked a thumb behind him, where an old hotdog stand stood. 

“Break time?” Frisk asked, coming around to hold your hand again. 

“that’s the idea, kiddo.” Sans winked at them. “c’mon. i know a shortcut.”

Sans sauntered off, and Frisk followed after him. Instead of protesting, you walked after them, trusting that Papyrus was right about his brother. 

 

The sudden change of scenery threw you for a loop. 

One minute you were heading deeper into Waterfall, and the next you were inside some sort of restaurant. Frisk seemed unfazed, splitting off from you and Sans to greet the dog monsters you encountered earlier. 

Sans took a seat at the bar, glancing back at you and gesturing for you to take the seat next to him. When you took the seat, a wet fart sound erupted from your seat and your face flushed as laughter rippled through the establishment. 

The skeleton snirked, trying to keep from laughing himself. “careful...weirdos out whoopee cushions in the seats sometimes.”

You glared at him, standing a bit and pulling the cushion out from under you. “Looks like I’m the _butt_ of the joke, huh?” You tossed it at him. 

He caught it with ease, a few chuckles  escaping him as he shoved the toy into his jacket. “don’t get too _cheeky_ about it. could'a happened to anybody.”

“I’m a little _bummed_ , though.” You tried to keep a serious face. “I don’t think I’ll ever get to the _bottom_ of it.”

The both of you burst into giggles. Your embarrassment melted away and you relaxed a bit. Sans wiped a stray tear from his socket as his own laughter subsided. 

You looked up as a flame monster approached the two of you. He was dressed smartly, with a pair of thin glasses in his facial area. You couldn’t make out any distinguishing facial features. Frankly, it felt awkward trying to study features that weren’t there, so you directed your attention back to the skeleton beside you.

”sup, grilbz?” Sans nodded to him. He looked over to you. “what'cha hungry for?”

”Eh, I’m not really hungry. Papyrus made oatmeal for breakfast.”

”aww. his favorite with the little dino eggs?” Sans smiled fondly. You nodded. “cute. hey grillby, i‘ll just have my usual.”

Grillby nodded, walking off. 

“So, I wanted to apologize for last night. I know it’s not technically my fault, what with static and all that, but I didn’t mean to spook you with it.” You said. 

Sans grunted softly, his cheekbones dusted with a shade of blue. He looked away from you with a tight smile, coughing roughly and waving a hand dismissively. “don’t worry about it. ‘s no skin off my nose.” He said quickly with a weak chuckle. “anyways, papyrus was on the phone, yeah? what was he callin’ about?”

You raised a brow at his deflection, but shrugged it off. He was probably just embarrassed that such a small thing got to him. You went along with it. “Yeah, he was saying something about Undyne, and how he was glad you were with Frisk and I.”

”that so?”

”Frisk and I saw them talking earlier. Is Undyne like Papyrus’ boss or something?”

“close. she’s a friend of his.”

”A _friend_?” The idea of sweet Papyrus being friends with such a terrifying and intimidating person bewildered you. You never would’ve guessed they were friends.

Sans shrugged, pausing when Grillby came back with a fresh burger and fries, sliding over a thick bottle of ketchup as well before walking off. Sans wrapped a hand around the ketchup, bringing it closer to him as he resumed. “undyne is the captain of the royal guard. my bro’s been tryna get into it for a while now, and in his efforts to do so, they’ve gotten closer.”

”I see. And the Royal Guard is responsible for capturing humans, I assume?”

”for the most part. haven’t been too many humans down here in a while, tho.” 

You watched in mild disgust as the skeleton tipped his head back, bringing the ketchup to his mouth and downing it like it was a soft drink. He sighed in content, grinning a bit at your expression. He offered the bottle to you with a lift of his brow bone and you shook your head. He set the bottle down again and pulled a crisp fry from the tray. 

“So Papyrus wants to be part of the Royal Guard, and Undyne...won’t let him?”

”she has her reasons, i’m sure. for now tho, he and i are just sentries. we report to her every now and again. i’m guessing she finally got his messages about you and the kid?”

You nod. “She called him earlier, and when they met up she seemed pretty mad at him for not capturing us. She told him she was going to capture us herself. Should we be worried?”

Sans took another swing of his condiment. The bottle squirted wetly as he finished it off, setting it down and wiping his mouth with his sleeve. 

“nah, you’ll be fine.” He slid off the stool, slipping his hands in his pockets. “welp, i think my break’s just about over. i’mma head back.”

”Aren’t you gonna pay for your...food?” You gestured to the uneaten plate. 

“oh, you mean you weren’t buyin’?” He laughed at the panic that twisted your features. “i’m kiddin’. grillbz will just put it on my tab.”

Well there’s that then. You lean against the counter and watch the skeleton walk out. The food sits untouched next to you, steam still wafting off of it. You sample a fry. 

Not bad. 

You don’t resist the urge to take another one. They have just the perfect crisp to them. You absently continue to pick from the basket of fries until none remain. 

Weird. You didn’t think you were hungry enough to finish them so quickly. 

Frisk giggles behind you and you turn in your seat to see them on the floor. A big fluffy dog is laying on their legs, lapping at their face as they rub its belly. A huge pile of armor sits just off to the side. You smile a little at the joy that has spread across Frisk’s face as they indulge the pup in more pats and belly rubs. What’s even funnier to you is that the rest of the dog monsters are eagerly waiting their turn, crouched around the small child. 

You look at the burger next to you, then back at Frisk. With a shrug, you grab up the sandwich. You’re gonna be here for a while, so why not enjoy it?

 

 

 

 Finally, you were able to pull Frisk out of the literal dog pile that had begun to overwhelm them. The dogs, however, continued to follow you through Snowdin, only dispersing after you entered Waterfall once again. Frisk insisted you keep moving forward, so you didn’t argue. You couldn’t help looking over your shoulder every once in a while though. 

Even through your cautious paranoia, you tried to take a moment to appreciate how beautiful Waterfall was. The shallow water from the smaller waterfalls was cool around your ankles as you and Frisk waded through them, you pant legs rolled up and shoes in hand. It was dimmer than the other places, moreso than you remember it being the first time you walked through. Then again, you were so caught up in searching for Frisk that it was all too easy to overlook the natural beauty of this place.

Funny enough, you think you would've remembered the big blue glowing circle that currently laid in your pathway. 

And the one that just appeared beside it....

And...

The patches of magic multiplied to create a circle around you. You hastily shoved Frisk forward, yelping loudly as your arm was grazed by the spears that suddenly sprouted from the ground. Frisk hit the ground on the other side, grunting upon impact. The rolled over to see you trapped, eyes widening in realization of your new predicament. 

"Run!" You urged them. "I'll be okay! We'll meet up later, just don't let her catch you!" 

Frisk scrambled to their feet, taking off a few paces before stopping suddenly and turning to you again. Through your pain, you mustered up a look that wordlessly told them not to argue with you. Their hesitance faded a bit and they turned, running off down the path without you. 

Now alone, you glanced around at the spears encircling you. Your arm still throbbed painfully, warning you not to touch them again. Your heartbeat picked up as you heard the familiar sound of clunking armor and heavy boots. 

"Ah-ha! I  _knew_ Papyrus was lying!" A gruff feminine voice roared. You spun to face her. 

Undyne was  _tall._ Her stance rivaled that of Papyrus, and that didn't make you feel any less intimidated by her. You actually cowered a bit as she approached. 

Her face was still shielded by her helmet, but you could sense her confusion as she stopped in her approach to study you. 

"Wait...Papyrus said there were two of you? _Where's the other human, human?_ " 

 

Indignance sparked inside you, but you bit your tongue in favor of trying to find a way out. Even if you could manage to hold your own against her in a confrontation, you didn't want to. There had to be some way to distract her. 

"Talk, human!" Undyne spat, summoning another spear just like the ones that encircled you. She stepped closer, the only think between you now was her own barrier. "And don't even  _think_ about trying to brainwash me with your human tricks." 

You weren't going to ask about that. Instead, you pointed behind her, shouting, "They're right behind you!" 

As stupid as it was, your fearful tone conveyed the urgency perfectly, and Undyne spun on her heel, carelessly attacking the shadows behind her. Fortunately, the spears surrounding you sunk back into the ground, leaving you to escape while she was distracted. 

Unfortunately for you, the distraction didn't last long. You heard her cry out in anger, and the harsh clunk of her armor echoed off the walls. Your heart leapt into your throat, choking you as you willed your legs to go faster. You searched desperately for something,  _anything,_ that could conceal you from Undyne. 

You spotted a rusty old door in the wall, and slid to a stop in front of it. Not even daring to check how close your persuer was, you shoved the door open and dove into the room. The thick metal door shut loudly behind you, and you threw your body against it, hoping it was enough to keep her out. 

Undyne's battle cry nearly vibrated the door with its intensity, and you cried out in fear as you searched the room. 

Shelves of old junk lined the walls, bordering the room. They met in the middle, where along counter top stood. An old tortoise monster sat hunched behind the counter, squinting at you and chuckling to himself in amusement. No words were exchanged between the two of you- he waved a clawed hand at you, gesturing for you to approach. Not having much of a choice, you scampered over, glancing over your shoulder at the door. You expected it to come flying off the hinges as Undyne kicked the door open. 

The elderly monster grabbed your attention by gently hooking his hand into the crook of your elbow, guiding you around the counter. He sat you on an old seat cushion on the floor behind the counter, sitting himself back in his chair just as you heard the door open. 

The hinges squeaked in protest at the rough treatment, but from what you could tell, the door was still attached. 

Undyne panted heavily. "Gerson! There are humans on the loose!" She growled. 

"Are there now?" Gerson asked, unconcerned about what was clearly a big deal to her. 

"Yes! You haven't seen it have you?" She questioned him. Her voice was closer now, and you held your breath. Your heart was almost deafening as you both waited for the old monster's response. 

He grunted. "I ain't seen nothing, deary. Maybe ya should try lookin' in the Lantern Room? Plenty a' hidin' spots in there." 

Undyne slammed a fist against the counter. A small part of you was impressed that it held its integrity under her brute strength. The other part of you was mortified by the shriek it startled from you. But Undyne didn't seem to hear it as she huffed, "Of course! They're probably halfway to Hotland by now!" 

She mumbled a hurried farewell to Gerson. The loud slam of the door notified you that she was gone now. 

You collapse with relief, leaning back against the rough wall behind you. 

"Thank you." you breathed. 

Gerson gave an amused chuckle as he turned in his seat to face you. He offered you a hand and pulled you to your feet, letting you collapse in a rickety rocking chair next to him. You groaned in pain as he accidentally grabbed your injured arm. His amusement turned serious as he noticed your discomfort. 

"Undyne's attacks 're no joke," he said. His tone sounded fatherly as he stood to his feet, shuffling out of the room. "Stay here. I'll go prepare ya some sea tea fer that injury.

"When I get back, I look forward t' hearin' how ya ended up like this." 

 


	11. Echoes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gerson is more than a crazy old tortoise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did I listen to Spear of Justice on repeat for hours trying to write this scene?
> 
> The answer is yes, I absolutely fricken did. 
> 
> Sue me. 
> 
> Yell at me on tumblr

You sipped at the hot tea that had been handed to you. Despite the heat that tickled your nose, the drink slipped past your lips smoothly. The taste was something akin to salted caramel. It wasn't a bad taste. It warmed your throat and spread throughout your body as it filled your stomach. Your injured arm tingled in a way that felt like static filled your bloodstream. It flowed through your veins, the magic repairing the damage left by Undyne’s attack. You sighed at the sensation, wriggling your fingers to test it. 

Good as new. 

Gerson chuckled with amusement at your fascination. He cleared his throat after drinking from his own mug. "Now then, little lady. Mind tellin' me how ya ended up like this?" 

You swirled the liquid in your cup, trying to figure out how to put your adventure so far into words. "It's a long story." 

The monster pulled his wrinkled lips to the side in a smirk, sinking down deeper into his huge chair. Apparently he had all the time in the world. 

So, you relented, and told him how you and Frisk fell into the Underground, and that something had changed inside of the child. You left out the parts of Resets and Loads, as well as Frisk doing harm to any of the monsters. You told him about the skeleton brothers, and how they took the two of you in, and how the youngest was trying to protect you from the armored psycho that was currently hunting you down. You finished your story with you and Frisk being separated. 

"I see," Gerson mused. "That makes sense now why your Soul is so troubled, deary." 

"Troubled?" 

He took a swig of his drink, smacking his lips. "Yep! As you may already know, your Soul is the culmination of your being. In confrontations it represents your physical body. It can also reflect your mental and emotional state, but most monsters aren't attuned to human Souls like that. I can see that yer carryin' a lot on your shoulders there."

"How can you read my Soul?" 

Gerson wheezed his laughter. "Darlin', when yer as old as I am, ya learn a few things here and there." 

You chuckled with him a bit. "You're really old then, huh?" 

"Old enough to remember the War, yes indeed." 

"The War between monsters and humans?" you asked. If he was  _that_ old, you couldn't even imagine the things he'd seen. That war was almost 100 years ago. You heard stories passed down through your family, but at the time, it never occurred to you that the tall tales were true.

"That very one." he nodded. His mirth faded into solemnity as he stared at his own cup. "Still remember it like it was yesterday."

"But! That's a story for another time, deary. Now that that wound's all healed up, ya should go lookin' for that kid of yours." 

Geez, his tone changes were almost as bad as Papyrus'. 

Still, you had to agree. Now that you were better, you should go find Frisk before something happens to them. Or...they do something to someone else. 

You thanked Gerson for his kindness before you left. He wished you well as you carefully left his shop. 

With no sign of Undyne, you moved forward in the direction you saw Frisk go. 

It didn't take you long to run encounter more monsters. After each encounter, you asked them if they had seen Frisk, but it seemed no one could point you in the right direction. You could only hoped that as you moved forward, they would reveal themselves. 

"heya. where's the kid?"

Sans startled you from your thoughts. He leaned up against the wall of the cavern, hands shoved into his pockets as he lazily watched you with one half-lidded eye. You glanced curiously at the telescope next to him. 

"What's that for?" you asked as you approached it. It looked really expensive, and you had to wonder how in the world Sans managed to get his hands on something so impressive. And...useless? 

There weren't any stars down here?" 

"stargazin'." he replied smoothly. It felt kind of rude to point out the obvious, so you went along with it. "it's normally 5000G to look through it, but for you i'll let ya for free." 

"Thanks." you chuckled a little, grinning at his generosity. You grabbed the eyepiece of the telescope delicately between your fingers, leaning over to look through it. 

You didn't expect to see much, but this was still disappointing. A red haze colored your vision, and no matter how much you adjusted the device, nothing would come to focus. When you straightened to complain to Sans, he had his glove pressed to his mouth, snickering heavily. 

Your brow furrowed. "What's so funny?" 

His eye lights darted up at you and he snorted, breaking down into childish giggles behind his hands. You looked back at the telescope, sure you were missing something. You examined the eyepiece again closely. 

Red paint was smeared on the lens, and even on your fingers. Which meant...

You swiped your clean hand over your eye and almost choked at the drying paint that stained your fingers. Sans hadn't stopped laughing. In fact, your reaction worsened his condition. For a creature who didn't have lungs (to the best of your knowledge), he was really having a hard time breathing as he guffawed. 

Seeing him so caught up by his prank, you couldn't help but laugh with him. The both of you were doubled over in laughter for a bit, before you were able to regain yourself. 

Then, something occurred to you. "This isn't permanent, right?" 

You've never seen a skeleton look so ominous before. 

 

 

"This isn't another prank, is it?" you groaned. You were still rubbing your face with a wet portion of your sleeve. Sans had claimed you had removed all the paint, but you didn't trust him. Your fingers were still faintly reddish, like you had just polished off an entire bag of hot Cheetos. You could only imagine the train wreck that was your face, and although your furious rubbing was probably not helping with the red tint, you didn't want to chance letting the paint set on your skin. Sans had definitely gotten an earful from you, even though he technically didn't have ears. 

"i swear it's not," Sans chuckled as he assured you. "we're just gonna stop and smell the flowers." 

 The flowers...? You took your sleeve away from your eye for a moment and noticed that there were indeed flowers, the iridecent kind that you saw Frisk interested in earlier. More were gathered here, grouping together along the pathway. For a moment, you forgot about Sans' prank and leaned closer to one of them to admire it. 

_"Do you want to hear my wish...?"_

You flinched back. The flower was talking to you??

Sans moved to quiet you. "it's an echo flower." he said softly. "it repeats the last thing it hears." 

_"Do you want to hear my wish?"_

Sans motioned for you to follow him, letting you stop and listen to the passing conversation.   

_"You have to promise not to laugh..."_

_"I promise."_

_"Okay...I want to climb on top of the mountain we're all buried under. I want to see the stars for myself."_

You heard laughter echo from the flower. 

_"I'm sorry...I know I said I wouldn't laugh but..._

_That's my wish too."_

The voices sounded young, almost as young as the little lizard monster you met earlier. It reoccurred to you then, that there was an entire generation of monsters that have never seen the night sky. They've never seen the sun rise, or the sun set, or watch the clouds float above them without a care. These monsters, young and old, were really trapped down here.

You glanced over to Sans, who was unaware of the momentary grief you felt for his people. Instead, he was knelt down beside another flower. From this angle, it looked like he was listening to it. Curiosity compelled you to approach him, kneeling beside him as he motioned you closer. 

You leaned in closer, tilting your ear towards the flower. 

_pbbbbttttttt_

Sans had a cheese-eating grin on his face as you pulled back from the farting flower. You playfully shoved him, huffing as he burst into giggles again. "Oh come on! How'd you even make that sound?" 

"magic." he replied mystically, wiggling his gloves in a 'jazz hands' motion. You rolled your eyes, standing to your feet-

_"Do you want to hear my wish?"_

You flinched at the sudden voice, pulling away from the flower. 

"it's an echo flower. it repeats the last thing it hears." Sans explained in a whisper. 

Wait. You've seen this before. 

Haven't you?

You stared at Sans, bewildered for a moment. His brow creased a bit and his grin faded some with concern. "heh, you okay?" 

"Uh, yeah. I'm fine." you said softly. "It just spooked me a little." 

Sans relaxed some with a soft chuckle. "don't worry. it's harmless." 

He guided you along to listen to the conversation. But the intense wave of deja vu left you speechless for the time being. And when Sans motioned you over to the flower in front of him, you knelt with an ironic chuckle. 

"It's not some sort of fart is it?"

Sans' smile disappeared for a split second- so fast that you doubted it had even left his face.

"heh, oh wow. am i really  _that_ predictable?" 

It nagged at you. You HAD seen this before. Not even a few minutes ago. But you don't remember LOAD-ing. 

Which meant...

Eyes blown wide suddenly, you converted the cry that burst from your lips into a rough cough. Sans jumped up with you, hands flying up to steady you as you swayed. 

"woah! you sure you're okay?" 

You didn't meet his eyes. "Yeah, I think I might be allergic to these things or something." you coughed again, clearing your throat. "I just remembered, I have to go find Frisk. I'll see you later, okay?" 

You didn't let him reply, praying that he didn't stop you as you rushed away from him. 

Your eyes searched the shadows frantically. There had been a LOAD, and you weren't sure why. But knowing Frisk and their troubles, your Soul clenched fearfully as you assumed the worst. 

You were so wrapped up in your horrible thoughts that you almost missed the small body that flung itself at you. Frisk clung to your jacket, trying to pull you back. A neon spear barely missed your torso, making you shriek. 

"Found you!" Undyne barked pridefully as she approached you. "You thought you two would be so clever splitting up! I'm done playing around with you two. Face me, cowards!" 

The colors around you inverted, and Undyne summoned a spear into her fist. 

You slammed your hand on "Mercy", and Undyne prepared herself to attack. You and Frisk dodged the onslaught of spears that threatened to pierce through you. Her attacks were so intense and rapid that you barely had time to pull away from the Mercy option before she started up again. You were slowing down significantly, your HP dropping dangerously low after only the first few rounds. You reached to press Mercy again after her recent attack, clutching your side in pain. 

Frisk acted faster, the glint in their eyes dangerous as they threw themselves into the Fight option. 

Everything happened all to quickly. 

_A flash of a knife was all the warning you got as you threw yourself between them. Pain shook you to your core, and you collapsed. Your eyesight began to get blurry and you could feel your Soul quivering in agony._

Pain wracked your body, but it wasn't as intense as you had anticipated it. You grabbed your stomach in pain, collapsing to your knees between Undyne and Frisk. 

Frisk dropped the stick in their hands, tears pooling in their eyes and streaking their dirty face. The didn't meet your eyes, and you didn't reach out to stop them before they turned on their heel and ran off. 

Slowly, you looked up at Undyne. Her helmet obscured her face, but as she stepped back away from you hesitantly, you began to notice the confusion that radiated from her. Your surroundings turned back to normal and your battered Soul returned to your chest. The warrior looked down at you silently for a moment before she too turned away from you, walking off into the shadows. 

You were alone again. 

 

You grunted with the effort it took to limp back through Waterfall. Sweat and blood soaked through your clothes, and you held your stomach tightly as you tried to put pressure on your wounds. You didn't dare try to check it, for the idea of seeing the damage the child dealt to you made you feel ill. Instead you focused on getting back to the little shop with the healing tea. Hopefully it would be enough to fix you up. 

AS you dragged yourself back through the field of Echo Flowers, you mind thought back to the conversation that you had heard. 

Every monster down here was affected. The second time around, as the flowers played back the children's conversation, you watched Sans' expression. It seemed you were getting better at reading the skeleton, for you noticed that he wasn't as unaffected as you initially thought. For a moment you wondered if he wanted to see the stars just as much as the others. The telescope he had earlier made you think it was so. True, he had used it to prank you, but it was still a super nice telescope. It couldn't have been a coincidence. 

You wanted to help them. Even through your pain, your Soul stirred inside you. The Determination that stirred inside you helped move a little faster. You had to get back to Gerson. 

Because if anyone had any idea on how to save the monsters, it would be him. 

 

 

Gerson seemed to be waiting for her as she pushed open the heavy metal door with the last of her strength. He gathered her up and brewed some more Sea Tea. He sat patiently as she sipped at it, the healing magic seeping through her veins and repairing the damage that was done to her. Once her throat wasn't so sore, she set her cup aside. looking up at the old tortoise with a fierce Determination he hadn't seen in a long time. 

"I need you to tell me how to free the monsters." 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Slowly but surely I will finish this story. Thank you for being patient with me. 
> 
> I really do appreciate comments and feedback! :)
> 
> Check out my tumblr sometime! My main blog is wholesomeremorse! My writing blog is writinginmorsecode!


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